Time To Destroy
by GleeAdorer123
Summary: Old friends and new friends come together to save Ash from a life of solitude - a result of his friends betrayal. Is the old Ash Ketchum still in the new Ash? Or is he gone forever?
1. Atop The Mountain

Atop the snowy point of stood a lone male figure, starring down intently at the snow covered ground.

The figure sported a white long-sleeved shirt, a thick black hoodie, black jeans and black boots, his hair was slightly long, enough to cover his almost empty brown eyes.

"its been almost a year Pikachu, can you believe it?" he asked a small yellow rodent on his shoulder, moving his gaze to the sky as he closed his eyes, thinking back to the day that changed his life, the words still fresh in his mind as if he had heard them yesterday.

-memories-

 _" **Your the worst pokemon trainer ever!"** That line had come from the boys longest traveling companion, Misty waterflower. He though at first she was just kidding around, it wouldn't be the first time the water pokemon trainer had questioned his ability to train his pokemon, but the amount of hatred he could hear in her voice, and see in her eyes made him almost cry._

 _ **"Give up on your dream, you'll never be a pokemon master!"** The second insult came from his long-time rival/friend, Gary Oak. He couldn't believe what he was hearing, Gary had always been a bit of a jerk, but did he really think so little of him?_

 _ **"your such a kid, even your pokemon known that your a failure!"** The familiar "kid" line came from Iris, one of his two companions through Unova. Those words almost hurt the most, he knew he wasn't the best trainer in the world yet, but he always tried hard, and always cared for his pokemon, they couldn't really think he was a failure, could they?_

 _The rest of his "friends who didn't say anything just stood and nodded in agreement, hard glares on there faces._

 _ **"sweetie please, maybe its for the best..."** The last remark hit Ash hard, really hard as it had come from his own mother._

-end of memories-

Shaking his head in anger and hurt, Ash reached to his belt and released his 10 pokemon, 5 of them being some of his originals who hadn't given up on him.

Out of the first poke'ball came his Hoenn starter Sceptile. It stretched its limbs before fishing out a twig and setting it in its mouth. Looking towards his trainer and friend, Sceptile nodded in understanding, knowning that Ash was thinking about _them_ and what they said. It shook its head in anger, never understanding how his loving master could be betrayed by anyone, or how any of his pokemon could have given up on him.

Out of the second poke'ball came his Sinnoh starter Infernape. Looking around, the fire type nodded to Ash, giving him a thumbs up in reasurance. Back when the rest of Ash's pokemon left him, Infernape almost saw red, nearly burning up Oak's carral before Sceptile stepped in and calmed down the ragging fire starter, who couldn't believe anyone would betray or hurt the human who had shown him so much love and attention.

From the next two poke'balls came the two pokemon that viewed Ash as there father: Scraggy and Donphan. Over the year, the two had become like brothers, sharing in their anger at the people who would hurt there father, trainer and friend.

The last pokemon that had stayed with Ash was none-other that his loyal Bayleef. She shook her head with a smile, running over to nuzzle againest her bestfriend.

The last 5 pokemon consisted of pokemon Ash had caught over the past year, including an Umbreon, a Zangoose, a Hitmontop, a Houndoom and a Rhyperior.

Smiling down at his friends/family of pokemon, Ash whistled softly to get there attention as he crossed his arms, "Listen up guys, its been a year since we came to this place, now, its time we go back and show those _traitors_ just how strong we really are!" his annoucment rewarded him with shouts and cries of agreement, causing the boy to nodd and return his pokemon once more.

Turning to his long-time partner and friend, Ash rubbed the side of Pikachus head whilst turning away from the mountain, unteraing three words,

"Time to destroy"


	2. How It All Went Down

Taking one last look at the place he had called home for the past year, Ash took a deep breath before walking down the path leading away from .

As he walked, he relished in the feeling of warm air as it hit his skin, having almost forgotton what it felt like outside of the cold snow he had become accustom to. Looking around as he walked, Ash took in his surrondings, watching as the tree's swayed lightly in the wind, and how the grass rustled as a few rattata's scurried from bush to bush.

Noticing a small body of water, Ash stopped by a rock in front of a large oak tree. Ash nodded to himself, and to the yellow rodent on his shoulder, watching as he jumped from his shoulder to stand in front of him: shrugging his bag of, Ash sat down on the rock and released his pokemon, who all gave a loud cry as they appeared one-by-one before him.

 _"Listen guys, i know i said it was time to go and show them are strength, and it is time! Just...i need to ease into it okay, take small steps away from home, then bigger steps along the way okay? So for now we can rest for the day alright by you guys?"_ Ash asked slowly, moving his hood down and his hat off his head to reveal his face, hoping his friends would understand.

A cry of agreement made the boy smile and nod whilst standing up slightly, he stretch his arms slightly before looking at the group, _"Alright guys, split off into the usuall teams and work on your speed and dodging, got it?"_

With a nod, the pokemon split into their usual pairings: Pikachu V.S Houndoom, Sceptile V.S Infernape, Hitmontop V.S Scraggy, Zangoose V.S Donphan and Bayleef V.S Rhyperior, whilst Umbreon sat to the side, being the one who watched over the teams as they practiced.

Closing his eyes, Ash sighed softly, a small smile playing on his lips as he heard his pokemon eagerly run off to train. Grabbing his bag and slugging it onto his back, he whistled to his Pokemon, who turned to look to there master, " _I'm going for a walk guys, i won't be long, just keep up with the usual training okay!"_ before turning and walking between the trees, hands stuffed into his pockets.

-With Ash's Pokemon -

 _"Its the anniversary today right?"_ Asked Houndoom, puffing smoke from her nose gently as she stretched her limbs out, preparing to practice with her master's most loyal partner,

Nodding softly, Pikachu shook his head before zipping out the female fire dog with his **Agility** avoiding the **Flamethrowers** shot his way, " _Yeah it is, that's why he is acting the way he is...all this time has passed and still dont understand why they did it!"_

The fire hound replied with a soft growl, shooting **Flamethrowers** towards Pikachu, " _You know, master never speaks of that day, what actually happened?"_ She replied, stopping her fire, her words catching the attention of the other pokemon, who stopped training and walked over to the group:

" _Now that i think about, Houndoom is right, Ash never told us what happened..."_ Umbreon spoke up, his voice deep but gentle, nodding towards Zangoose who pipped in with a " _Yeah!"_

Looking to each other, Pikachu, Infernape, Sceptile, Bayleef, Scraggy and Donphan sighed and indicated for them to sit in a circle: stepping forwards, Pikachu started things off, " _It all started when me and Ash had just finished in a place called Unova, we didn't win, but we tried are hardest, and Ash was really excited to be getting home to see his mother, the Professor and all his pokemon"_

 _"when we got back, all the people Ash had traveled with were all at his house, even Iris and Cilian, who we had just parted ways with in Unova"_ Pikachu continued, a small half smile appearing on his face before quickly fading _"Me and Ash were surprised, but happy! We though everyone was there to congratulate us on how well we did in the Unova league, but we were wrong"_

 _"As soon as we walked in, Ash's mother brought us to the room all the traitors were sitting in, then as soon as we walked in they started shouting at his! Claiming that Ash was a bad trainer, that he only cared about himself and not about them! One of them even said that Ash's pokemon didn't believe in him!"_ Continued Pikachu, small sparks starting to be produced from his cheeks as his voice got louder and angrier as he told the story.

 _"Ash was heart-broken, he didn't even say anything back to them! he just left and went to Oak's lab, he told me he needed to see the rest of the gang, make sure that they all still believed in him"_ Looking over at the other 4 pokemon, Pikachu nodded and sat down, rubbing his small hand over his forehead, trying to calm himself down.

Infernape stepped forwards, continuing the tail, " _Before Ash had gotten home from Unova, the traitors had gathered us all up, trying to persuade us that Ash was a bad trainer who just held us back from reaching are full potential, that he didn't care about us in the slightest and that if we ditched him when he came to see us they would each take us in and train us"_ letting a small growl out, the Sinnoh starter clenched his fists as the flames on his head started to flare up in anger, only calming down when Sceptile placed a hand on his shoulder.

Taking a deep breath to calm down, he nodded and continued, as Sceptile released him, walking back to his place leaning against a tree, _"At first everyone was silent, trying to figure out if this was some kind of joke, but when they didn't say anything, we all knew that were being serious...that was when Corphish stepped forwards, hesitantly at first, but quickly he scurried over to the girl with the orange hair with a nod! I couldn't believe it! But slowly, one-by-one, each of the Pokemon stepped forwards, joining the other side until it was just me, Sceptile, Bayleef, Donphan and Scraggy left!"_ clenching his fist again, Infernape took a few shaky breaths, steeping back as Sceptile opened one of his eyes, moving his signature twig out of his mouth.

 _"everyone was looking at us expectantly, whilst all we could do was stare at them in shock and anger...we didn't understand how they could think Ash was a bad trainer, or that e didn't care about them! We tried to reason with them, each of us taking the respected Pokemon we had traveled with, but it didn't work"_ shaking his head in disappointment, the green lizard placed the twig back in his mouth and closed his eyes.

Donphan scuffed the floor with slight agitation, drawing the attention of the pokemon as he spoke up, _"since me and Bayleef were on the same team when Father went through Johto, Bayleef spoke to them whilst i spoke to his Unova team with Scraggy, since he was still a little young at the time"_ lifting a foot, Donphan stopped Scraggy as he tried to headbutt his leg at the remark, _"whether he likes to admit it or not at least"_ the last remark causing the intently pokemon listening to giggle and snicker softly at Scraggy who just grumbled, grabbing his bottoms as they fell slightly and pulled them up.

 _"We thought we could talk some sence into them, remind them of all the times Father had supported them, protected them, loved and cared for them, but they wouldn't listen...all they kept saying was that the others were right, and that we were stupid for still believing in Father! As we tried to convince them, we hadn't noticed that the traitors had left, on their way to betray Father"_

After taking his foot of Scraggy's head, Donphan stepped back, walking over to Bayleef, who was still trying to calm Pikachu down as Scraggy whistled sharply, waiting for the attention to turn to him before he continued the memory, " _We argued, and argued for hours! We only stopped when we noticed Father was running towards us with Pikachu not to far behind...everyone went silent as Father stopped in front of us, he was upset, i just wanted to hug him really badly, but big brother said i had to wait for a little bit..."_ shooting a small glare towards Donphan who just shrugged, Scraggy huffed and look back at the other pokemon, _"Before anyone could say anything, Father had fallen to his knees, crying and begging to us that what the traitors had said wasn't true! As Father cried, Pikachu came to us and asked us if it was true, which everyone but us 5 started screaming yes, even starting to bad mouth farther! But we all stood to the side, watching as Pikachu turned to us in desperation, but we all told him that we loved Father and wouldn't ever abandoned him!"_ Scraggy finished, sitting down as Bayleef raised her head:

 _"I'll skip the details for now, but in short, after we told Ashy we were staying with him, he went and spoke to the professor, got his poke'balls and left Pallet Town..."_ Bayleef spoke gently, using one of his vines to hug Scraggy gently as small tears of anger welled in his eyes, and another vine to rub Pikachu's back, " _Next thing we knew, we were outside . Ashy explained to us that we were going to stay here for a whilke, to train and prove everyone wrong! That we were strong! That night, Ashy was so distraught, he kept having nightmares, so everyone gathered aorund him to cheer him up"_

Smiling faintly, Bayleef looked to the sky and closed her eyes, " _So we did, we trained, we grew, and eventally, you guys all joined Ashy's family"_

The 5 pokemon just sat and stared at the other gorup of Pokemon, eyes wide and mouths gaped open in shock.

" _So...i'm guessing Pikachu and the others just told you guys about what happened right?"_

 **Hey readers, hope your enjoying the story! Any tips or adive is greatly appreciated, as this is my first story ever! what im doing right, or wrong, let me know so i can improve the story, and make it more interesting to read!**


	3. Baby Steps

Looking to the source of the voice, Pikachu smiled and ran to Ash, quickly jumping on his usual spot on his shoulder and nuzzling his best friends face, causing Ash to smile as he walked over and sat on the rock in front of the oak tree once more. Smiling weakly as the rest of his Pokemon looked at each other nervously, Ash beckoned them over, " _Don't worry about it...you guys were going to find out eventually..."_ shaking his head with a sad smile at the sympathetic faces his Pokemon shot him, Ash raised each of their poke'balls, " _Ill talk to you guys about it later, for now we should move along a little more okay?"_ once the group all agreed, they returned to their respected poke'balls, with the exception of Pikachu who nuzzled his best friends face once again.

Standing back up, Ash moved his hat up slightly before continuing down the dirt path leading away form the small pond.

 **-Time skip, that evening, around 5:00 -**

Ash stood nervously outside the Pokemon Center that was located at the end of the route, **(Location may differ in this story slightly, but nothing huge)** rubbing his hands together whilst his eyes darted backwards and forwards rapidly: **_"Am I ready for this?"_** Ash thought to himself, gazing up at the Pokemon Center doors - He knew that the Pokemon Center wouldn't have a lot of people inside, given the area they were in, but he was still nervous, even if it was only Nurse Joy.

Blinking when he felt a a hand on his cheek, Ash turned and looked at Pikachu who gave the boy a reassuring smile and nodded, _"Pikapii, pipi-pikachu!"_ even though he couldn't fully understand the yellow mouse, Ash knew what he was saying: If he didn't do it now, he never will!

Swallowing with a shaky breath, the boy straightened up and pushed the door to the building open, keeping a steady face as a small bell chimed and Nurse Joy lifted her head in surprise. Looking around, Ash was relieved to see that only Nurse Joy and two other trainers were present: relaxing his shoulders slightly, Ash walked up to the counter and spoke calmly, but friendly to the Nurse, _"E-Evening Nurse Joy, c-could you please check my pokemon please?"_ the stuttering surprised not only Nurse Joy, but the boy himself; he knew he was nervous, but stuttering? He didn't think he was that bad!

Joy looked at the boy in front of her, " _ **There is something different about this boy..."**_ she though to herself, looking over the boy, noting to herself that he looked a little to young to be an area as dangerous as this, but that his face looked like it had been hardened from rough weather, plus the Pikachu on the boys shoulder looked exceptionally strong, " _ **He is actually kind of cute..."**_ she though, causing her to blush slightly, causing the young boy in front of her to raise an eyebrow, whilst the Pikachu snickered to himself, clearly knowing what the young nurse was thinking.

Shaking her blush away, the nurse ignored her thoughts and smiled at ash, " _Of course young man, just place your poke'balls in this tray and i will check them for you"_ pulling out an empty tray and placing it on the counter, waiting for the boy to place his poke'balls into the tray.

Blinking, Ash smiled and nodded, placing all ten poke'balls into the tray and allowing Pikachu to jump into said tray as well: He sure was relieved than anyone who came to the area was aloud to carry at least 20 pokemon at anyone time, " ** _At least i dont have to deal with any questions about why i have more than 6..."_** Ash thought, watching as Pikachu and his other friends were taken by the nurse.

Glancing around slightly, Ash walked over to one of the couch's and sat down, relaxing slightly into the soft feeling of the material againest his skin, which was use to the rough feel of rocks and the harsh battering of snow.

 ** _"I wonder where we should go first...maybe Pewter City, or Cerulean City..."_** Closing his eyes in thought, Ash was pulled from his thoughts when he felt a tap on his shoulder, causing him to jump and whirl around in surprise:

 _"Whoa, whoa, sorry! Didn't mean to surprise you dude!"_ Looking at the pair in front of him, Ash blinked and nodded, sitting back down stiffly with a short nod, " _Sorry..."_ he muttered, ducking his head down to avoid eye contact as the two trainers sat on the couch in front of him.

Glancing up slowly, Ash looked over the trainers slowly: The first was a boy, who looked to be around his own height and age, had short spiky blond, dark brown eyes and was clad in dark grey jeans, a red shirt with an unzipped yellow jacket over the top, as well as having black gloves, yellow sneakers and white belt holding 4 Poke'balls: on the front of his jacket was the name Jason, _**"Must be his name..."**_ Ash though to himself, looking over at the girl: She looked older than both him and the other boy, with dark red hair held up in a high ponytail, but with her bangs hanging over her face, framing her grey colored eyes. She sported a dark purple hoodie over a white t-shirt, black jeans and matching purple sneakers, alongside purple gloves and a black belt containing 5 poke'balls.

 _"Me and my friend here were just wondering what you were doing around this area? we have been here for nearly a month and we haven't seen you before..."_ Asked the girl, looking at the raven haired boy with curiosity, " _Oh, my name is Natalie, this is Jason, whats your name?"_

Grumbling softly, Ash turned his eyes to his lap and spoke quietly, " _My name is Ash..."_ waiting a few seconds, Ash realized the duo were waiting for an answer to the first question, causing Ash to get nervous once more, " _I-i...I-i only just got here, though i would stop by the center to check on my Pokemon..."_

Natalie raised a brow at the clearly nervous boy in front of her, but decided not to push any further: Unfortunately, Jason didn't seem to notice Ash's uncomfortable behavior and grinned wildly, jumping up and pointing a finger at Ash and shouting loudly, " _Awesome! I challenge you to a Pokemon battle!"_ Ash looked up at Jason a little startled and taken back from the challenge and how loud the boy was. Natalie rolled her eyes at Jason, grabbing his hood and yanking him back down onto the couch, causing the boy to yelp in pain, " _Stop shouting Jason, you just watched Ash give his pokemon to nurse joy, so how can he battle you? plus, can't you see that Ash ic clearly a little uncomfortable talking to a couple of strangers?"_

Jason blinked in confusion, looking at Natalie for a second before looking over at Ash, finally noticing his nervous demeanor, causing him to rub the back of his neck and smile sheepishly, " _S-sorry Ash! i just got excited...but...can we still battle?_ The request made Natalie face palm. Just as she was about to scold the blond haired boy, a small ding went off, making the trio turn there head to see Nurse Joy walking back to the counter, Ash's poke'balls and Pikachu in tow.

 _"Young man, your pokemon are all in perfect health"_ the words caused Ash to smile as he quickly stood up and walked over to the counter, hoping to avoid more convocation with the two trainers, " _Thank you Nurse Joy"_ thanking the nurse, Ash picked up his poke'balls and placed 6 on his belt and placed the remaining 4 into his bag, smiling when Pikachu jumped back onto his shoulder.

Turning around, the young boy jumped once more when he realized that Jason was stood behind him, fists clenched and an eager grin on his face, " _WOW! Your Pikachu looks really strong! Can we battle now?! Please!"_ The boy pleaded, hand already gripping a poke'ball as Natalie stood behind him, shaking her head and shooting an apologetic face towards Ash.

 _"Urm...I-I-I don't know..."_ Ash stuttered out, stepping back and hitting the counter. Shooting a questing gaze to Pikachu, who raised a brow before grinning and shouting, " _Pika!"_ signalling that he wanted to battler. Sighing in defeat at his starter, Ash looked at Jason and nodded reluctantly, " _Okay...Pikachu want's to battle, so i guess we can battle..."_

 **"Then i am out of here, i didn't think just talking with some other trainers who don't even know me would be so hard..."** He though, watching with a straight face as Jason shouted in excitement and ran outside, followed by Natalie who just rubbed her head in clear frustration.

* * *

 **Next chapter will be the first look to see if Ash has gotten stronger, or weaker over the past year:**

 _Spoiler: In the next chapter, Ash will meet up with an old friend, or two, that have been searching for him all year!_


	4. Critical Error And Two Old Faces

Jason ran excitedly towards a small clearing not far from the Pokemon Center, skidding to a halt on the far side. Turning around, poke'ball in his hand, he watched with an excited grin as Natalie walked to the center of the clearing, Ash not far behind, but walking at a more slow pace.

Ash walked behind the duo of trainers slowly, stopping to face Jason on his side of the field as Natalie raised her arms, " _This is a 2-on-2 between Ash and Jason! First one to knock out all their opponents Pokemon is the winner!"_ Lowering her arms, Natalie stepped back and looked from Jason to Ash, waiting for the two to release their respected Pokemon.

Throwing his poke'ball, Jason shouted with the same excited grin stretched across his face, _"Its battle time Darmanitan!"_ Ash watched as the poke'ball opened, the red beam of light taking shape into Jason's first Pokemon. A large, red ape like Pokemon, with long bushy, flame shaped eye brows materialized, pounding its large fists against its chest as it gave a cry of its name, a grin similar to Jason's appearing on its face, " _Darmanitan!"_

Thinking momentarily to himself, Ash bent down, allowing Pikachu to jump of his shoulder, who turned with an expecting face, " _Pi? Pi-Pikachu!"_ The yellow mouse exclaimed, having though his best friend would have chosen him to battle first. Smiling, Ash rubbed Pikachu's head with a reassuring smile, " _Don't worry buddy, you'll get a shot as well"_ Huffing, Pikachu nodded in understanding and disappointment, choosing to sit down next his trainer, waiting to see who he would chose first. Reaching to his belt, Ash grabbed a poke'ball and threw it silently, finding the announcement of his Pokemon's name pointless:

 _"Donphan!"_ Ash's Donphan exclaimed, shaking its head as it scrapped the floor in an almost charging motion. Taking its battle stance, the elephant-like Pokemon took its battle stance, ignoring the fact that two other humans present, deciding to ask his father about it late.

" _The first battle will be between Darmanitan and Donphan! Begin!"_ Natalie announced, raising her arms and dropping them again just as an official referee would, focusing on the two Pokemon in front of her.

 **\- Darmanitan V.S Donphan -**

 _"Bad choice! We got this in the bag! Lets start things of with a_ **Fire Fang** _!"_ Jason shouted, pointing at Donphan with confidence: obviously thinking that Ash had made a rookie mistake sending a ground type out against a fighting type! The ape like Pokemon started to run towards Donphan, Mouth wide open as its teeth became surrounded with fire.

" _Use_ **Defense Curl** _, then use_ **Thunder Fang** _whilst he's close"_ Ash stated calmly, his face neutral as he watch the battle before him: Quickly rolling himself into a horizontal ball, Donphan waited as the Darmanitan approached him, biting down with the fire attack on his hard armor, smiling to himself as the ape like pokemon pulled back and shouted in pain, holding its jaw as the bite against the armor hurting its teeth. Quickly, Donphan uncurled itself, opening its mouth as electricity gathered around its teeth before biting down on Darmanitan's arm.

 _"Shake him off Darmanitan! Then use_ **Fire Punch** _and_ **Hammer Arm** _!"_ Not wasting any time, Darmanitan quickly threw Donphan into the air before clenching its fist as it became engulfed with bright red flames, swinging and striking the unprotected stomach of the elephant Pokemon as Ash called out, " **Defense Curl** _into_ **Rollout** _"_ watching as Donphan was stuck by the punch, quickly followed by the Darmanitan's arms glowing, who charged at Donphan with its arms raised above its head.

Donphan didn't flinch as the punch connected with his stomach, instead curling up seconds after the fist connected and maneuvering away from the swinging arms of the ape Pokemon, using his **Rollout** to propel himself away from the arms as they smashed into the ground, throwing up a dust cloud.

Jason grinned, thinking that the dust cloud was the result of his Darmanitan hitting Donphan for massive damage, potentially even knocking it out, but was shocked when the dust cleared to reveal his Darmanitan in a small crater, a gruff cry of, " _Manitan!"_ as he realized that Ash's Donphan wasn't beneath his Pokemon, who had struck the ground with the attack, and had clearly hurt the fire-ape's arms from the impact.

Frowning slightly, Jason clenched his fists and shouted, _"Don't let up! Follow that Donphan and keep using_ **Hammer Arm!"** Standing quickly, Darmanitan nodded, a small stream of white steam puffing out its nose as it's arms glowed once more and it jumped, swinging its large arms towards Donphan over and over again.

 _"Use_ **Double Team** _, then follow it up with_ **Sandstorm** _"_ Ash ordered, almost shaking his head at the tactic Jason was using. Watching as his Pokemon duplicated itself till 9 identical clones of Donphan surrounded the now confused ape Pokemon, whose arms were still glowing as it looked around frantically, trying to figure out which one was the real Donphan. As both the Darmanitan and its trainer looked at the duplicates, unable to figure out which one was the real one, all the Donphan's curled up and began circling around Darmanitan, quickly throwing up a **Sandstorm**.

 _"_ **Earthquake** _"_ Ash said as the dust surrounded the area, watching as all the Donphan's reared into the air, slamming down onto the ground, causing it to shake. Jason struggled to keep his footing whilst sanctimoniously shielding his eyes from the sand, as did Natalie as the earth shook beneath them, whilst Ash and Pikachu just watched, having no trouble in keeping their own footing from the attack.

Falling forwards, Darmanitan pushed itself up, flinching from the pain in its arms as it tried to jump when Jason shouted, " _Quick! Close your eyes and jump to evade!"_ but Darmanitan was still reeling from the after effects of its previous move, resulting in the Pokemon not jumping in time as the ground shook beneath it. Struggling to keep its balance, Darmanitan grunted, eventually falling backwards with a thud.

" _That's enough Donphan"_ Ash said calmly, watching as the **Sandstorm** slowly calmed down. Each of the Donphan's disappeared till only the original one was left.

Jason coughed, slowly lowering his arm as the barrage of sand slowly stopped. confused as to why Ash had stopped, but blinked in shock, running to his Darmanitan who was lying on its back, swirls inits eyes.

Blinking in surprise herself, Natalie lifted her arm in Ash's directs. _"Darmanitan is unable to battle! The winner is Ash and his Donphan!"_ Nodding with a smile, Ash walked towards Donphan, kneeling down besides the short pokemon and scratching behind his ears, " _Great job buddy, that_ **Double Team/ Sandstorm** _combination of yours is getting better every time you use it..."_ Ash trailed off, smiling when Donphan exclaimed a happy, " _Phan!"_ In response, nuzzling into Ash's hand with a happy smile.

Jason helped his Darmanitan sit up with s small smile, " _You alright there pal?"_ He asked in worry, sighing in relief when his Pokemon gave a soft, " _Manitan..."_ whilst shooting him a quick thumbs up, " _Good to here...You were great out their, take a well deserved rest"_ Jason spoke to his Pokemon whilst holding up its poke'ball, smiling as Darmanitan smiled and returned to the poke'ball.

Standing up, Jason's grin returned back to his face, " _Looks like I was right! You really are strong! Lets see you do against this one! Shes a real tough one!"_ He spoke confidently, putting Darmanitan's poke'ball away and reaching for his next one, _"Go Nidoqueen!"_

Standing slowly, Ash watched as Jason released his second pokemon: a somewhat reptilian looking blue bipedal Pokemon with a short blunt snout, narrowed looking brown eyes, large ears and a small horn protruding from its head. Stood looking down with eyes closed upon release, the Nidoqueen's eyes open as she slammed her tail on the ground, a loud cry of, " _Nido!"_ echoing around the clearing.

Looking down at Donphan, Ash raised his poke'ball and called him back, " _Take a quick rest buddy"_ returning the poke'ball to his belt, Ash switched to a different poke'ball and threw it in the air, his silence returning.

" _Bayyy!"_ Bayleef exclaimed, shaking herself as she appeared on the battle field, a happy smile on her face: looking around, she smiled when she noticed Ash, running over and nuzzling against his stomach in affection.

Smiling and letting out a small, " _Aww"_ making Ash blush a little, Natalie raised her arms once again, " _The next battle will be between Nidoqueen and Bayleef! Begin!"_

 **\- Nidoqueen V.S Bayleef -**

 _"_ **Energy Ball Barrage** _"_ Ash ordered, once Bayleef finished nuzzling him and returned to the battle field, a determined look on her face. Jumping slightly, Bayleef opened her mouth and began firing green balls of energy towards Nidoqueen.

Jason looked at Ash in confusion and curiosity: he here was again sending out a Pokemon weak to his! **"I wont underestimate him this time...he must have a plan!"** he thought to himself as Ash spoke the command. Thinking quickly, Jason grinned and pointed at the balls of energy heading for his Nidoqueen, " _Use_ **Poison Sting** _to cancel out those_ **Energy Balls!** _"_

Quickly, the barrage of **Energy Balls** were cancelled out via Nidoqueen's **Poison Sting** , making Jason punch his fist in the air, " _Great Job! Now use_ **Poison Tail!** _"_ he shouted, grinning as his Nidoqueen's tail changed from blue to a dark purple as it swung and slammed into Bayleef.

 _"Bayyyy!"_ Bayleef exclaimed in pain as the tail connected with her side, sending her flying and smacking into a tree, " _Bayleef!"_ Ash finally shouted, surprising Jason and Natalie, " **Thats the loudest he has been this whole time"** they both though as Ash's demeanor changed, running over to Bayleef's side and helping her sit up.

 _"Are you okay Bayleef?!"_ Ash asked, a look of worry on his face as helped Bayleef sit up. " _Bay...Bay-Bayleef..."_ Bayleef replied, lifting her head up to reveal it had taken on a tinge of purple, making Ash's face crinkle up in fear and worry: Poison! " _Pikachu! Bring me my bag! Quickly!"_ Ash exclaimed, laying Bayleef down with her head resting in his lap as Pikachu quickly grabbed Ash's bag in his teeth, running it over to him.

Keeping one hand on Bayleef's head, Ash unzipped his bag and pulled out a bag full of pecha berries: ripping the bag open and grabbing two poke'balls of his belt, he released Sceptile and Infernape.

 _"Sceptile!""_

 _"Infernape!"_

" _Infernape, use a weak_ **Flamethrower** _, melt these berries! Sceptile, use your_ **Synthesis** _whilst touching Bayleef!"_ Ash ordered, watching as the two Pokemon jumped into action, there faces showing their worry for Bayleef. Shooting small flames from his mouth after he took the pecha berries from Ash, Infernape quickly melted the berries, cupping them in his hands whilst kneeling down besides Bayleef, waiting as Ash gently opened her mouth and poured the liquefied berries into her mouth: At the same time, the seeds on Sceptile's back began to glow as his body began glowing a faint green. Pressing a hand against Bayleef's head, Sceptile transfered the recovered eneryg into Bayleef.

After a few seconds, Bayleef opened her eyes slowly, " _Bayleef..."_ she spoke softly, the purple tint on her snout starting to fade, making Ash, Pikachu, Infernape and Sceptile all sighed in relief. Infernape and Sceptile stepped back slightly as Ash helped the Johto starter stand up, " _Are you okay Bayleef?"_ He asked again, still worried from hos shaky Bayleef was whilst standing. Bayleef's nod didn't completely convince him, but he smiled and raised her poke'ball, " _Return Bayleef, you did you best"_ a small sad smile crossed Bayleef's face as she returned, making Ash's heart ace for his affectionate pokemon.

As the scene took place in front of them, Jason and Nidoqueen looked to each other, each mirroring the other with a look of guilt and regret on their faces, " _Maybe that was a little much...return Nidoqueen..."_ Returning his guilty looking pokemon, Jason bite his lip whilst putting the poke'ball away. Looking at Ash and his Pokemon, Jason slowly began walking over to the small group, " _L-Look Ash...I-I'm really sorry about that, i-i didn't mean to-"_ He started only to stop when Ash stood with an almost murderess face.

 _"Didn't mean to what?! Nearly kill Bayleef?! Your SORRY?!"_ Ash screeched in anger, standing up so quickly his hat fell off his head, _"Everybody knows that_ a **Poison Tail** _is EASILY_ _enough to kill ANY grass Pokemon! AND ALL YOU CAN SAY IS SORRY?!"_ the raven-haired boy continued, glaring angrily at the cowering boy in front of him.

Pikachu, Infernape and Sceptile stood in front of Ash, each sporting an equally as angry face: Pikachu's cheek were violently sparking blue electricity instead of the normal yellow, whilst the flame on Infernape's head was growing in size as its anger grew. Sceptile, the normal peace maker in the gorup alongside Bayleef, glared sharply at the boy, the twig in his mouth having been snapped in anger.

 _"Whoa! Calm down Ash! Jason wasn't trying to kill your pokemon, he was just-"_ Natalie shouted, running in between the two boys, only for Ash to interrupt her as well, " _HE WAS JUST WHAT?! WHAT JUSTIFICATION DOES ANYONE HAVE FOR USING_ **Poison Tail** _ON A GRASS POKEMON?!"_ the boy boomed, making the female trainer flinch back from the volume. She opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out, what could she possibly say to defend Jason using a move that was known WORLD-WIDE to kill baby, basic and 1st stage Pokemon?

Shaking in anger, Ash grabbed his bag and turned away from the two trainers, " _I knew it was a mistake to leave..."_ he muttered darkly, quickly taking off into the surrounding forest, ignoring the trainers cries of his name.

* * *

 **-Scene change+Time change-**

After running for .some time, Ash finally stopped, hands on his knees as he panted in exhaustion from the running. Not long after Ash heard three cries, " _Pikapii!" "Nape-Fernape!" "Tile-Sceptile!"_ turning his head, Ash sore Infernape, Pikachu behind him, both panting just as hard as him. Looking aorund for Sceptile, the forest-lizard jumped in front of the raven-haired boy from a tree above him, an understanding, but still somewhat angry look on his face.

Tears began to well in the boys eyes as the situation that just happened finally hit him: He had messed up big time! _"I can't believe it..."_ he choked out, " _I-I was so stupid! H-how could i send her out against a poison type?!"_ Ash cried, his knees shaking so bad that his entire body collapsed. Pikachu and Infernape cried out in fear as they sore there trainer collapse, but were relieved when Sceptile caught the sobbing boy, helping Ash to stand using his own weight.

" _E-Even after all this time i still made a rookie mistake!"_ he uttered between heartbreaking sobs, his entire body shaking as tears spilled down his cheeks, dipping onto Sceptile's knees, " _I really am a failure as a trainer...they were right! They were right all this time!"_ He finished, his voice filled with despair and self-hatred.

 _"Pikapii!" "Fernape!_ Infernape and Pikachu shouted in protest, running up to the duo, Pikachu jumping and clinging to Ash's chest as tears spilled down his own face whilst Infernape grabbed Ash's arm and helped Sceptile to support him, his own tears close to falling. Sceptile face changed from understanding and angry to pained at his trainers words: Ash hasn't been this broken since the day everyone turned on him.

Just as Ash opened his mouth to speak to his clearly hurting pokemon, a loud, earth-shaking roar interrupted him. Looking to the sky, two silhouettes could just about be made out against the harshness of the sun, but Ash and Pikachu couldn't believe what, or more importantly who was flying towards them.

 _"Pidgeooott!_

" _Rawwr!_


	5. LETS DO THIS!

_"Infernape!"_

Before Ash could blink, Infernape let go of Ash, jumping forwards in a fighting stance as he eyed the two-new Pokemon that had obviously sparked an reaction form his master. Stumbling back from sudden lack of support on his right side, and with a small, " _Whoa!"_ Ash fell backwards, Sceptile tumbling down with him, having not been prepared for the sudden shift in weight.

" _Infernape!"_ Ash heard Infernape shout in a threatening voice: startled and fearful. Ash jumped to his feet and ran to Infernape and grabbed his arm, which was reared back and covered in electricity, " _INFERNAPE STOP!"_ Ash shouted, but he was to late: Ash was sent flying towards the two flying pokemon who had stopped, eyes wide, as Infernape jumped and threw his fist forwards.

As Ash flew through the air, he screamed as the electricity traveled through his body: Without thinking, the two flying Pokemon sped towards Ash's hurtling body, eyes narrowed in fear. Ash closed his eyes, waiting for the impact of hitting one of the two Pokemon, but it never came. Instead, Ash fell two powerful arms catch him, making him open his eyes slowly.

Looking up at his savior, the raven-haired boys eyes filled with tears as he looked up at the sharp blue eyes of the pokemon, " _Charizard!"_ Ash shouted happily, throwing his arms around the long neck of the dragonic looking lizard, who grinned in reply, a growl of. " _Rawr"_ followed by a small puff of white smoke as it gently landed on the floor, moving his arms to hug the boy back.

After a few seconds, Ash pulled back and smiled up at Charizard, " _Its great to see you buddy!"_ Charizard replied by shooting a weak **Flamethrower** at Ash's face, making Ash yelp, his face now covered in a small layer of soot. Behind him, Infernape stood growling, readying another **Thunderpunch** as the fire hit Ash's face, but to his shock, Ash just shook his head and laughed as Charizard placed him on the ground. With a look of bewilderment on his face, Infernape looked to Pikachu, who had ran up to Ash and Charizard, jumping onto Charizard's shoulder in a similar fashion as he did with Ash.

Still smiling as Charizard set him down, Ash let out a painful, " _Arrg!"_ As the support from Charizard's arm left him, making him fall to his knee as some of the electricity from Infernape's **Thunderpunch** sparked off him, making him hold his stomach as the electricity still coursed through his body: Jumping into action, Sceptile ran to Ash, dropping the newly placed twig from his mouth as he grabbed Ash's arm, swinging it round his neck as he helped his trainer stand once more, leaning Ash against his body.

" _PIDGEOTT!"_ Before Infernape could turn to the source of the shout, he cried out, " _Fernape!"_ as a blur of brown and cream colored feathers crashed into him with a powerful **Arial Ace** , sending the monkey pokemon into the air, crashing down into the ground with a small grunt of pain. Sitting up with a small flinch, Infernape looked down at his side where the attack had hit, a bruise already starting to form: Growling, Infernape raised its head as it stood up, one hand covering his bruised side as he looked up at the pokemon that had attacked him.

Towering over the Sinnoh fire type by a full foot in height, a large brown and cream feathered bird pokemon stood, a cold glare shot towards him as the large bird pokemon spread its wings in a threatening manor, " _Pidgot! Pidg-pidgot!"_ It shouted as its wings began to glow, readying herself to attack the strange looking pokemon in front of her again if necessary.

 _"Pidgeot wait! Don't attack him!"_ Ash spoke up, limping over to the monkey and bird pokemon with the assistance of Sceptile. Lowering her wings, Pidgeot looked down at Ash in confusion, " _He thought you guys were a threat, he was trying to protect me..."_ Ash reasoned softly, shooting a half smile towards Infernape who nodded quickly, a look of guilt on his face from the pain he had caused his trainer. Once Pidgeot nodded in understanding, Ash pushed himself off Sceptile after shooting him a thankful smile, steadying his footing, Ash opened his arms and hugged the avian pokemon happily, to which Pidgeot raised a wing and placed it around Ash's back, returning his hug.

Releasing Pidgeot, Ash smoothed her wings down with a smile on his face, " _Its been a long time Pidgeot...I've really missed you! You two Charizard!"_ Sceptile quickly grabbed Ash's arm again, helping the young boy walk over to small placement of rocks, helping him to sit down before stepping back, reaching to the ground to grab his twig and placing it back inits mouth as it nodded at Charizard, who snorted and nodded back.

Sitting back on the rock with a small flinch, Ash smiled as Pikachu jumped into his lap with a happy but worried, " _Pikapii!"_ Gently patting the electric mouses head, Ash reassured him that he was okay, to which Pikachu nodded reluctantly, jumping onto his best friends shoulder and nuzzling his face affectionately.

Nodding to himself, Ash turned his attention to Infernape, who stood a few meters away from the group, a look of guilt and regret on his face. With a small smile, Ash patted the space next to him, indicating to Infernape to sit next him. Hesitantly, Infernape slowly walked over to the group, sitting down silently whilst still holding his side, not daring to look Ash or the other's in the eyes, " _Nape..."_ He spoke sadly, still not looking Ash in the eyes, instead staring at the ground beneath him.

 _"Infernape...Look at me..."_ Ash spoke gently, making the fire-monkey look up slowly, surprised when he didn't see anger in his masters face, " _Its okay buddy...you though they were threats and were trying to protect me..."_ Ash told Infernape, gently patting his shoulder in reassurance before turning his attention to Charizard and Pidgeot, " _Even though its great to see you both again...i dot to ask, how did you find me? And why are you guys here?"_ Ash asked the two in curiosity, blinking when the duo looked at each other and nodded, before Charizard untied a piece of rope from around Pidgeot's neck that held a small box and a neatly wrapped up piece of paper: grabbing the parcel gently, Charizard held the items out to Ash, waiting for him to take them.

Taking the items gently, Ash unfolded the neatly wrapped paper, placing the box in front of him as he read the letter:

 ** _Dear Ash,_**

 ** _I'm so sorry about what happened._**

 ** _Not long after you left, Gary and others came to the lab and told me about what had happened, I was absolutely furious at what they told me they had done. I scolded them all, they had no right to call you such terrible things, or to the right to tell you to give up on your dream! I ended up kicking them all out of the lab in anger, including Tracy who is no longer my assistant._**

 ** _Anyway, after i calmed down, i was concerned about you, so i gave Liza a call and told her about what had happened: and let me say she wasn't to pleased either! Don't even get me started on Charizard's reaction! Liza told me she had to have the three strongest Charizard's and Charla restrain Charizard from destroying the place!_**

Ash stopped reading the letter, looking up at Charizard, who blushed and shrugged, as if to say, " _What? They insulted you!"_ Rolling his eyes, but with a faint smile, Ash looked back to the letter and continued reading:

 _ **Me and Liza knew that Charizard wanted to find you, so she sent me his Poke'ball. Before he left, i took Charizard to route 1 in search of Pidgeot. Once i found her and informed her of what had happened, she was almost as angry as Charizard was, but managed to keep herself from destroying the area. I asked her if she wanted to join Charizard in the search for you, and she quickly agreed, leaving a newly evolved Pidgeot in charge once she told the flock she was leaving.**_

 _ **Being as no-one knew where you had gone, i told the two of area's you potentially could have gone to. Before they left i attached a small box and this note around Pidgeot's neck. I hope were ever you are, you safe my boy, and know that i will never stop believing in you.**_

 ** _Sincerely, Oak_**

Ash's eyes watered as he finished the letter: he hadn't realized that the professor still believed in him, and gone to such an extent to find two of his oldest partners. Wiping hid eyes, Ash folded the paper up whilst grabbing his bag, placing the note inside safely. Picking up the box, Ash removed the ribbon used to seal it and opened it up, revealing two poke'balls and a pokedex.

Smling, Ash picked up the poke'balls and looked to Charizard and Pidgeot, recognizing that the two poke'balls belonged to the two. Charizard gave Ash a thumbs up, whilst Pidgeot just smiled and ruffled her feathers as her response. Setting the two objects to the side, Ash picked up the third item: A black and white pokedex. Opening it up, he was greeted by the usual robotic voice of Dexter, " _I am Dexter, I am programmed to proved trainer Ash Ketchum with information about Pokemon. If i am lost or stolen i can not be replaced"_

Smling, Ash held the pokedex close, " _This is amazing...the professor has given me another chance to prove to everyone!"_ He exclaimed, making Pikachu shout, " _Pika!"_ In agreement. Looking at Charizard and Pidgeot, Ash smiled and slowly stood up before looking to the sky and shouting, his voice now filled with confidence, " _You won't be sorry professor! I'll them all! I'll show the world that just how much stronger we all are!"_

A unanimous roar followed Ash's statement: Charizard shot a **Flamethrower** in the air whilst clenching his fists, Pikachu pumped a fist in the air, electricity sparking from his cheeks, Pidgeot spread her wings wide and cawed loudly, whilst Sceptile nodded, his arms crossed with a new glint in its eye. Infernape grinned and jumped around excitedly, completely forgetting about the pain in its side as it jumped around happily.

 _"LETS DO THIS!_ Ash finally shouted, a huge grin on his face as he returned his pokemon after each of the cries of agreement. Grabbing his hat, which had fallen of when he had flew through the air, Ash set it back on his head as Pikachu once again jumped onto Ash's shoulder, both of them looking ahead of them as the sun began to set: their eyes filled with confidence and joy.


	6. The City Of Stone

Ash gazed down at the city that stood before him, " _Pewter City...Its been a long time, right Pikachu?"_ Ash spoke calmly, raising a hand to stroke his partners head, earning a happy " _Chaa"_ Nodding to himself, Ash gripped the handle of his bag, taking a deep breath as he jumped down from the ledge he was standing on and continued his way down to the city: lifting his head high as he walked with a challenging look in his eyes, Ash whispered to himself in an almost dark manner, " _I'm coming Brock..."_

Walking along the streets, Ash smiled slightly as he remembered the first time he walked thought the city: " _I was such a rookie..."_ The boy spoke softly to himself, his body tense as the people of Pewter City walked around him, some stopping and starring at the him: swallowing his fear, Ash walked with his head held high and his eyes starring a head of him, ignoring the stares shot his way until he stood outside the Pewter City Gym.

 _"This is it...no turning back now buddy..."_ Ash spoke, a hint of nervousness in his voice as he raised his hands, pushing the gym's doors open as he walked in, announcing confidently, any hint of fear or hesitation gone, " _Brock Slate? I'm here to challenge you to a Pokemon Battle"_

* * *

Looking up in surprise, Brock stood up from his traditional cross-legged position and looked at his newest challenger: The first thing Brock took notice off was the electric mouse that sat on the boys shoulder, its eyes were narrowed to resemble a glare with electricity sparking off its cheeks, " _ **Reminds me a little bit of HIS Pikachu...**_ " The Pokemon breeder thought to himself, a confident smirk crossing his face as he crossed his arms, " _ **Must be one of HIS delusional fan-boys of something"**_

Hoping down from his small pedestal, the tanned trainer spoke to Ash in an-almost smug like voice, " _Is this your first gyb battle? if so, their are certain rules-"_ He started only for the boy to raise his head slightly, moving his long raven-hair out of his face to reveal his dark, angry looking brown eyes, " _No, this isn't my first gym battle, i am well aware of the rules-"_ Ash started, reaching into his pocket, pulling out his old badge-case, now dirty and slightly rusting from age, opening it to reveal his 8 Kanto gym badges, making Brock gawk in surprise as Ash continued, " _As you can see, i already have all my badges, i'm just here because i want to battle you at your strongest, not the withdrawn power you demonstrate against newbie-trainers"_

Quickly composing himself, Brock shook his head but nodded silently, snapping his fingers, making the lights switch on as the battle field began to close in. But to Brock's surprise, the boy quickly jumped up and backwards, landing on his side of the battle field: Before Brock could comment, Ash pointed a finger at Brock, " _You know? you really shouldn't do that stupid finger snap thing to call the battle field on! What if i HAD been a new trainer, and i wasn't fast enough to get out the way? I could have been seriously injured"_ Ash told the older boy off, shaking his head and reaching to his belt and grabbing a poke'ball, " _But whatever, its your gym, what are the rules for this battle then?"_

Brock frowned as the raven-haired boy told him off, " _ **Who does he think he is, telling me how to run my gym..."**_ Brock thought in annoyance at the patronizing tone of the boys tone, his hand already gripping a poke'ball at the boys question, "T _hree on three, No substitutions, first one to knock out the others Pokemon first is the winner"_ he spoke with authority in his voice, clearly trying to intimidate the boy in front of him.

Rolling his eyes at Brock's attempt to intimidate him, Ash nodded and looked to the side when he noticed a referee stand on a rock between the two, " _This will be a three on three battle with no substitutions between Brock Slate of Pewter City and..."_ When the referee looked at Ash, he pushed his hat up and spoke with a monotone voice, look Brock straight in the eyes, " _Ash Ketchum from Mount Silver"_ The referee nodded and continued, " _Ash Ketchum of Mount Silver! As the leader, Brock will chose his pokemon first"_

Having not taken his eyes of the older boy, both Ash and Pikachu smirked as Brock stared at them, his mouth hanging open in shock, his smirk fading and being replaced with a scowl when he started to laugh, a mean smirk crossing his face, " _So your alive after all this time Ketchum? This is going to be fun"_ Brock said arrogantly throwing his poke'ball to the filed and shouting, " _Go Golem!"_

Still scowling, Ash watched as the rock-type pokemon materialized to a bipedal-tortoise like pokemon with green/gray rocks slates covering its body, " _ **Looks like Geodude finally evolved"**_ Ash thought to himself, watching as Golem shouted its name, sporting a similar arrogant and confident look as his trainer. Throwing his own poke'ball silently, Ash stayed silent as his own Pokemon appeared on the field, " _Umbreon!"_ His Umbreon announced, shaking his fur as he appeared with a smile on his face, which faded quickly when he noticed Golem and Brock. Growling in anger, Umbreon took his battle stance, recognizing the trainer as one of the people Ash had told him and the others about.

Initially surprised at the Moonlight Pokemon's appearance, Brock's smirked once again, laughing loudly as he uncrossed his arms, " _So how did you convice this weakling to join you Ketchum? Promises to become strong and that you would always love him?"_ Brock asked nastily, hoping that Ash would react to the insult like he use to: to Brock's surprise, Umbreon just growled louder, joined by Pikachu who had jumped of Ash's shoulder and stood next to him, whose cheeks were now crackling loudly with blue electricity, whilst Ash stayed silent as the pokemon breeder insulted him.

* * *

 _"The first battle will be between Brock's Golem and Ash's Umbreon! Begin!"_ The referee interrupted, trying to hide his surprise at the way Brock was treating the challenger. Brock smirked and pointed at Umbreon, " _Let's finish this quickly Golem, Use_ **Rockblast** _!"_ Shouting his name, Golem raised his arms as a glowing spear started forming between them, grinning as the rocks began shooting towards Umbreon.

" _Use_ **Iron Tail** _to send them back"_ Ash commanded with a straight face, watching as Umbreon turned around, his tail glowing a brilliant silver. Without moving anything but his tail, Umbreon easily smacked each of the rocks back towards Golem, who's eyes with widened in surprise. " _Use_ **Defense Curl** _!"_ Brock shouted, surprised that Ash's pokemon easily deflected the **Rockblast** without so much as a flinch.

 _"Use **Dark**_ **Screech** " Ash ordered as the rock pokemon pulled its arms and legs into itself, taking shelter inside its rock covered body. Brock blinked in confusion at Ash's command, watching Umbreon to see what he did, convinced that whatever the dark-type did wouldn't be able to penetrate his Pokemon's rock-hard exterior.

Umbreon smirked at the command, already having figured out his masters plan. Umbreon's body began to glow a dark purple and black color: closing his eyes, the fox like pokemon focused the dark energy to its mouth, making the glow fade until it was just glowing around his muzzle. Opening his eyes with a jump, followed by his mouth opening, releasing an ear-piercing screech, the usually clear colored waves glowing the same color that that surrounded his mouth.

Brock yelped, covering his ears as the screeching sound filled the room. Watching in shock as the combination of moves struck his Golem, pushing it down into the ground: what surprised Brock more was the exclamation of pain that he heard come from his Golem as the attack struck him, as well as how the dark colored waves not only struck the rock-type's body, but surrounded the pokemon, the waves sticking to the outer-shell of Golem.

 _"Finish it with_ _ **Shadow Team** " _Ash commanded, the sound of the screech having not affected him. Whilst stopping screeching noise, Umbreon quickly duplicated itself around the crater that had formed underneath Brock's Golem, who had uncurled himself form his protective **Defense Curl** and was now standing inside the crater, but looked to be in pain as the dark purple waves from the previous attack still clung to his outer-shell.

" _USE_ **BULLDOZE!** _"_ Brock shouted, watching as Golem lifted its foot and slammed it to the ground, making the ground shake, but not before flinching as the waves continued to cover the rock-type's shell. All the Umbreon clones seemed to lose their footing, making Brock grin as he prepared to call out another attack, but was quickly interrupted, " _Jump, and fire"_ Ash called, watching as all the clones jumped unanimously, firing round after round of **Shadow Balls** at the injured pokemon.

Golem screeched in pain as the barrage of **Shadow Balls** stuck its already injured shell, as well hitting his unprotected arms, legs and face. A small explosion was released as the balls of shadow energy stuck Golem, exploding when they came in contact with the purple energy surrounding its shell. Coughing, Brock covered his eyes as bits of rock and dust were thrown into the air from the explosion calling out to his Pokemon, " _NO, GOLEM!"_

Ash watched silently as the explosion happened, smiling slightly when Umbreon had already jumped back, standing on his side of the field once more. Brock swatted at the dust cloud as it began to settle, revealing Golem on his back, swirls in his eyes as the purple energy waves sparked of his body as he cried weakly, " _Go-lem..."_

 _"Golem is unable to battle! The first round goes to Ash and his Umbreon!"_ The referee called, raising an arm in Ash's direction, who just nodded, moving his hand down to rub Umbreon's head as it jumped to his side, purring happily from the praise, " _You were great out their Umbreon"_

Brock was in shock at how the battle had turned out, but quickly shook it off as he jumped into the crater, ignoring the crackles of energy as he helped Golem sit up, " _Golem, are you okay?"_ The tanned teenager asked in worry, sighing in relief when Golem gave him a thumbs up, a half smile on his face, " _Thank god...you did your best Golem, you take a long rest..."_ Golem nodded with a smile, watching as Brock raised his poke'ball and returned the defeated pokemon.

Jumping out from the crater, Brock pulled out another pokemon, handing her his poke'ball, " _Blissey, take Golem into the back, he needs to recover"_ Brock told his Blissey, who nodded her head happily, taking the poke'ball from her trainer and walking it into the back. Turning back to the field, Brock was confused when he sore Ash smiling at him, " _Why are you smiling? You just got lucky, you won't get so lucky with my next pokemon! Go Gigalith!"_ Brock spat at Ash, throwing the poke'ball that he had grabbed during the exchange between him and Blissey.

* * *

As Brock released his second Pokemon, the smile that was on Ash's face quickly fell, his posture going rigid as Brock announced the Pokemon's name. With a roar, the blue quadruped Pokemon appeared, stomping its feet into the ground. Noticing Ash's posture change, Brock smirked and laughed once more, " _recognize him?"_ he asked Ash spitefully, his smirked staying on his face even when Ash didn't reply.

Grabbing another poke'ball form his belt, ash held it in his hand and pressed the button, sending his second pokemon out, whilst at the same time returning Umbreon, thanking him once again for his performance during the battle.

 _"Scraggy!"_ The Pokemon announced, grabbing its front and pulling it up as it appeared to the field. Looking around, Scraggy noticed the Gigalith in front of him, making him growl and glare at the it, smirking a little when he sore the realization go through Gigalith's eyes as it recognized him, before it looked to Brock, who nodded, then to Ash, a look of shock on its face, whilst Ash just stared at the rock pokemon blankl

 _This next Battle will be between Gigalith and Scraggy! Begin!_

 _"Looks like your still the rookie-trainer i thought you were! you STILL haven't evolved your pokemon! this will be to easy"_ Brock gloated, making sure to throw an insult into his line, ignoring the look of anger on Scraggy's face, " _Use_ **Rock Tomb** _Gigalith!"_ Brock commanded, to which Gigalith complied, having got over its initial shock of seeing its old trainer, and one of the pokemon it had traveled around with during Unova.

Gigalith grunted softly, stamping its feet on the ground as several glowing rocks raised from the ground, flying towards Scraggy. Without flinching, Ash looked to Scraggy and spoke calmly, " _Take it, you know what to do"_ Making both Brock and Gigalith blink in surprise at the command. Trusting its trainer, Scraggy nodded and stood tall, as tall as he could being so small, not speaking as the rocks surrounded him and before burring him underneath them.

Brock smirked, thinking that Ash had either given up or was making a stupid mistake once again, but was surprised when a bright white light shot out through the cracks in the rocks, a loud cry of, " _SCRAGGY!"_ filling the room as the rocks flew of the pokemon, who was now engulfed with a bright white light: he was evolving!

Scraggy's form began to change, growing in size and shouting, " _SCRAFTY!"_ as the light died down to reveal the newly evolved pokemon: the newly evolved Scrafty stood over a foot taller than he used to be. The single red scale that used to stand on his head had multiplied, now resembling a mowhawk, whilst his skin was now a somewhat dark shade of orange, his pant's like loose skin stayed the same yellow, but was much large, some of if now hanging down the back of shoulders, resembling a hoodie.

Ash, Pikachu and Scrafty all smirked at the surprised look on both Brock's and Gigalith's face, _"Now, Scrafty, use_ **Low Kick,** _f_ _ollowed up with_ **Drain Punch** _and **Zen Pulse** " _The command snapped Brock out of his surprise as he quickly commanded back, " _Use_ **Protect!** _Then use_ **Sandstorm** _and_ **Iron Defense!"**

Snapping out of its own shock, Gigalith quickly threw up a protective barrier in front of itself, but was surprised when Scrafty jumped over the protect. Now standing behind the rock pokemon, Scrafty kicked Gigalith's back legs, making the pokemon shout in shock, falling forwards and breaking its protect. As Scrafty reared his fist back, it now glowing a maroon color, Gigalith stomped its back feet onto the ground behind itself, throwing up a sandstorm. Scrafty grunted, falling backwards as the sand hit him in his face, his fist loosing its color and power as he move his hands to shield his eyes from the sand roaring around him.

Whilst Scrafty was distracted, Gigalith had managed to get to its feet, its body shinning a bright silver color as it raised its defense up, " _Perfect! Now Gigalith, use_ **Double Team** _followed up with_ **Headbutt!** _"_ Brock shouted through the storm, making Ash calmly command back, " _Close your eyes and concentrate Scrafty, remember the training with Donphan and focus on the movement of the sand around you"_ The command made Brock snort: Ash really was stupid if he though THAT would work!

Gigalith, thinking the same as Brock at that point, duplicated itself till Scrafty was surrounded, easily seeing through the sandstorm, each of the Gigalith's stomped on the ground once more, charging forwards, the red crystal on each of their head's glowing white. With his eyes closed, Scrafty listened carefully to the movement of the sandstorm around him, listening for the disturbance of movement from Gigalith. Snapping his head to each side, Scrafty grinned: " **Found him"** He thought as he heared the movements of Gigalith, easily picking the real one out since the clones didn't have the weight of Gigalith.

 _"Jump, then use_ **High-Jump Kick Spin** _and_ **Brick Break"** Scrafty heard though the storm, quickly jumping into the air as Gigalith charged at him. Scrafty flinched slightly when the felt the sharp tip of Gigalith's crystal graze his knee, but igrnoed it, instead twisting his body around, his other leg and foot glowing white. Aiming downward, Scrafty spiraled down towards Gigalith, his arms and fists now glowing a similar white color. Gigalith turned towards Scrafty as Brock shouted " **Hyperbeam!"** Reacting quickly, Gigalith open its open, gathering white light before shooting the powerful attack towards Scrafty.

Scrafty clenched his teeth together in pain as the beam hit him, but continued his attack, traveling through the white beam, smashing into Gigalith's chest, followed up by slamming his arms down on its front legs.

Upon contact with Gigalith, an explosion echoed around the room, clearing away the sandstorm, making Ash, Brock and the referee cover there eyes as the explosion sent sand, dust and powerful gusts of energy at them.

Both Brock and Ash stood tensaly, watching as the smoke cleared, waiting to see what Pokemon was left standing.

Raising his arms once again, the referee stated, _"The winner of this battle goes to..."_

* * *

 **Quick question, do you guys want me to do like a side series where i explain how Ash caught each of his new pokemon? and how he trained them? Or should i leave it a mystery? OR i could try and include it in the story, just not sure how i could without it getting boring is all!**

 **Any tips are greatly appreciated! BTW, if words aren't spelled right, and don't flow properly, Sorry, i have a small form of Dyslexia, so it can be hard for me to notice at times...**

 **ONE MORE THING! Who do you want Ash to battle next? And are their any Pokemon you want Ash to catch? Other than possible returns of Ash's other pokemon i mean!**


	7. Traitor Number 1

" _Both Pokemon are unable to battle! the second round is a drawn!"_

The dust had finally died down enough for the figures of the pokemon to be seen: to the left, laying on its back was Gigalith, swirls in its eyes and somehow, a dent was visible from where Scrafty had kicked it. Laying a short distance from Gigalith, Scrafty was on his stomach, swirls in his eyes with small bruises all over his body, but two larger ones on both of his legs.

Ash smiled, walking onto the field and picking up Scrafty, cradling him gently in his arms, " _You were amazing Scrag- I mean, Scrafty...I'm very proud of you..."_ Scrafty smiled as the boy he sore as his father praised him, raising his hand gently, grinning a little when Ash returned the high-5, before closing his eyes as Ash returned the exhausted pokemon. On the other side of the field, Brock was scowling in anger as he raised his poke'ball and returned Gigalith, " **He was holding back...ill need to talk to him later..."** Brock thought in annoyance as he gave the poke'ball to Blissey who was standing to the side, knowing that Gigalith wasn't trying his hardest.

Once he had left the field, Ash turned and smirked at Brock, " _Ready for the final round?"_ Ash asked in a taunting voice, making Brock's face begin to turn a tint of red in anger at Ash's tone. Growling in annoyance, Brock grabbed his final poke'ball and threw it whilst shouting loudly, " _DESTROY THIS ROOKIE, GO STEELIX!"_ Ash smirked at the older boys reaction, knowing that the breeder was starting to give into his anger.

" _Steelix!"_ Steelix roared loudly, landing on the field, making the ground shake slightly as the walls seem to shake from the powerful roar. Looking at Steelix, Ash's face turned into a smile, " _Nice to see you again Steelix, its been a long time..."_ He spoke to the steel snake, " _Ste-Steelix!"_ It replied, a smile on its face as Ash spoke to it, which just furthered Brock's anger.

 _"Stop that Steelix! He's the enemy!"_ Brock shouted angrily, making Steelix turn and look at Brock in confusion and shock, whilst at the same time making Ash frown in disappointment at Brock. Shaking his head, Ash sighed whilst looking from Brock to Steelix, " _Just because YOU dont like me, doesn't mean you can stop your pokemon from greeting me when they see me, you can't MAKE them hate me just because you do!"_ Ash criticized calmly, no hint of malice or anger in his voice as he crossed his arms, " _From the way Steelix is reacting, something tells me you never told him what happened? Same thing with Blissey over their, her and Steelix smiled as soon as they sore me, if you had told them what happened, they wouldn't be so happy to such a "failure of a trainer""_

Steelix and Blissey blinked at Ash's words, turning to look at Brock questionably, who's face was going red in embarrassment and anger: taking a deep breath to keep his composure, Brock clenched his fists and looked to Blissey and Steelix, " _I''ll explain it to you guys later,for now we have a battle to finish okay?"_ Brock reassured them, but unbeknownst to the pokemon, Brock had no plan on telling them what had occurred.

Blissey just nodded with a happy, " _Blissey"_ having full faith in her father, whilst Steelix nodded solemnly, clearly unsure whether his long time friend was telling the truth: he had been with Brock for so many years, he knew when the boy was nervous, and lying.

Ash on the other hand just rolled his eyes and shook his head, knowing right away that Brock was lying. After debating whether to call Brock out on his lie, the raven-haired boy decided against, knowing that is the two pokemon really wanted the truth they would either force it out of Brock, or would seek him out for the story. Looking down at Pikachu, who was already looking up at Ash with a knowing grin, Ash nodded, earning an excited, " _Pika!"_ From Pikachu, who scampered down to the field, shooting Steelix a respective nod: even if the electric mouse didn't respect Brock anymore, didn't mean he didn't respect some of his pokemon!

* * *

 _"The third round will be between the leaders final pokemon, Steelix, and the_ _challenger's second pokemon, Pikachu! if the challenger wins this round, he will be declare the winner! Battle, Begin!"_

 _" **Doublegility"**_ Ash called, watching as Pikachu ran forwards, dozens of Pikachu clones appearing on the field as they all dashed around the field at lightning speed, making them look like a blur to the eyes. " _Use_ **Iron Tail!** _"_ Shouted Brock, his mind still clouded with anger: Ash could tell, if not for the clenching of his fists, but by the fact his face was still tinted red and his entire body was shaking with his anger.

Steelix looked concernedly at Brock, but raised its large tail as it shone brightly, slamming his tail down repeatedly, each time missing the correct Pikachu. Deciding to ignore it for now, Ash watched as Steelix twisted its head from the right to left, its evasive body grinding against the floor as he tried to keep his eyes trained on Pikachu, who showed no signs of stopping his mad dash.

" _Use your own_ **Iron tail,** _then use_ **Thunderbolt!** _Aim for the spikes"_ Ash ordered, rolling his eyes as Brock calmed down enough to snicker at Ash, " **Thunderbolt? Iron Tail?** _On a Steelix?!"_ Brock called out, baffled at the boy before him, using non-effective moves on his pokemon was ridicules! At least, that's what Brock thought as he snickered, commanding Steelix to **Iron Tail** in a circle to knock out all the Pikachu''s

Smirking at Brocks command, Ash stayed silent, watching the battle unfold in front of him: Swinging his tail as instructed, Steelix raised its tail and began twisting his body, aiming at the Pikachu's, who had all jumped up, their own tails glowing brightly before turning a silver color.

 _"Its over, Steelix will knock out your pathetic pokemon and-"_ As Brock began taunting the raven-haired boy once again, he was cut off from the loud cry of, " _Steelix!"_ Looking to the field in confusion, Brock starred in shock as Steelix stomped twisting its body, keeling over in pain as all the Pikachu clones smacked into on of his spikes, followed by releasing a powerful **Thunderbolt.**

Watching in shock as Steelix roared in pain, Brock's face was that of pure shock, even more so when he saw his strongest, and most loyal pokemon fall to the ground with a loud thud, swirls in its eyes, electricty sparking of its body which was covered in small burn marks.

Smiling as Pikachu gave a victory cry of, " _Pika!"_ Ash opened his arms and caught the little mouse pokemon as he ran and jumped into his arms, shouting, " _Pikapii!"_ happily, a big smile plastered on his face: _"Great job Pikachu! just like we practiced!"_ Ash praised Pikachu, making him blush a little but nod proudly at the praise.

* * *

 _"Steelix is unable to battle! The winner is Pikachu, and the victory goes to Ash ketch-"_ Just as the referee began to announce Ash as the winner, whilst Ash was preparing to give Pikachu more praise, they were both interrupted from Brock screaming loudly in anger: looking to Brock, who was now standing next to Steelix's unconscious body, both of them, even Pikachu where shocked at the amount of anger that Brock's face was showing.

 _"THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! NO WAY COULD YOU PATHETIC RAT DEFEAT STEELIX! YOU MUST HAVE CHEATED LIKE THE PATHETIC TRAINER THAT YOU ARE!"_ Brock roared whilst pointing an accusing finger at Ash, who's face went from shock to being somewhat amused, as well as slightly irritated as his former friend accused him. _"And HOW exactly did i cheat? We are on YOUR field in YOUR gym, so there is no way i could have-"_ Ash started, but was interrupted as Brock ran forwards, his fist raised whilst shouting angrily.

Reacting quickly, Ash thre Pikachu to the side, not caring if he got hit, just that Pikachu didn't. Bracing himself for impact, Ash was surprised when it never came, instead hearing Brock shout in pain. Slowly opening his eyes, Ash was astonished to see that the previously unconscious Steelix was standing in front of Ash, disbelief covering its face as well as a slight bit of anger.

Blinking in confusion, Ash looked to Brock, and had to contain his laughter as the boy held his what-looked-to-be-broken hand: indicating that instead of hitting Ash, he had instead punch Steelix.

Hearing the muffled laughter coming from both Ash and Pikachu, who had already jumped back onto Ash's shoulder once he sore Steelix jump in front of his trainer, Brock cursed under his breath whilst shouting angrily, holding up Steelix's poke'ball, " _RETURN! AND GET OUT YOU SNIVELING CHEATER!"_ Sighing softly, Ash picked up his bag that he had placed to the side, turning away from Brock and beginning to exit the building.

 _"Catch"_ Turning to Brock who spoke the words, Ash was surprised when a poke'ball was flying towards him, but quickly caught it, looking form the ball to Brock who continued to glare at Ash, still gripping his broken hand, " _Take that dis-loyal piece of crap and never come back!"_ Brock shouted, walking over and pushing him out the door, slamming said doors behind him.

Looking back in shock, Ash looked down at the poke'ball in his hand: It was clear to Ash right then and their as he cradled the poke'ball close, sencing the despair and anger coming from inside the poke'ball: " _ **I'll never forgive him, and neither should you...Steelix"**_


	8. New Training Grounds

Looking down at the entrance to mount moon, Ash stayed quiet for a few seconds before nodding to himself, turning and hopping down a small ditch to the side. Sliding down the dirt as Pikachu clung to his shoulder, shooting Ash a small glare when he stopped, the mouses face now having mud splattered over it: Shrugging to the electric rodent, who just huffed and jumped of his shoulder and ran over to a small pond a few feat away from where Ash stood as said trainer looked around the area he stood in.

It was large sized field, with large tree's surrounding the edges, shielding it form view: Boulders of all different sizes were scattered around the area, as well their being a small body of water to the side, the secluded spot wasn't far from the entrance to the mountain, down a side ditch that was hidden under the bushes and down a narrow slop.

Setting his bag down, Ash reached inside and grabbed his poke'balls, releasing each pokemon respectively: smiling as the group of pokemon stretched their arms/wings/legs, Ash coughed, making the pokemon turn to their trainer, " _Listen guys, were going to be here for the next week or so whilst we train"_ Ash was rewarded with a cry of excitment, but quickly held his hand up to keep their attention before they all ran off, " _First though, i have someone i want you guys to meet, Pikachu and Pidgeot have already met this guy before, but before any of you react bad, allow me to explain"_ Ash stated, showing them the worn out poke'ball, making the pokemon in front of him except Pikachu, who was still washing his face whilst grumbling in annoyance, look to their trainer in curiosity.

Smiling sadly, Ash explain to the group about Steelix, and how Brock had basically abandoned him, " _...As we were about to leave, Brock threw the poke'ball at me and told me to keep "it", calling it a traitor...hypocrite..."_ Ash finished, his last words earning him a few sympathetic glances from the group, but Ash smiled to reassure them, " _I'm fine guys, its Steelix that needs your understanding, not me...remember guys, Steelix didn't know about what Brock did to me, so go easy on him..."_ Ash continued, giving a pointed look towards Charizard, Infernape and Rhyperior, who were all stood together, arms crossed and slightly angry faces.

Rolling his eyes at the three pokemon, Ash pressed the poke'ball's center gently, watching as Steelix materialized in front of the pokemon, towering over the group below him -nonetheless, Steelix had a somber look on his face as he appeared, briefly glancing at Ash before moving away from the group, curling up in the corner farthest away from Ash and the others.

Frowning slightly, Ash looked to his pokemon, who all shared a worried look (With the exception of the previously mention trio and Pikachu) " _Don't push him guys, his trainer only abandoned him a few days ago, he needs time...just like we did, right buddy?"_ Ash spoke gently, leaning down to rub Pikachu's head as he ran back over to the group as Steelix slivered away.

When his pokemon nodded in understanding, Ash watched as they all wondered off, exploring the area around them as the young boy grabbed his bag, placing the poke'balls back inside before walking over Steelix. Raising his head to look at the approaching boy, Steelix bore a sad expression as Ash settled his bag on the floor, placing a hand on the steel snakes body gently, a sad smile on his own face, " _I'm sorry"_ Was all that Ash said he did his best to wrap his arms around Steelix, who's eyes began to fill with tears. Uncurling himself, Steelix curled his tail around Ash's waist, picking the raven-haired boy and lifting him up to his face, which Ash hugged once he could reach, " _I know it hurts right now, a-and that hurt will never 100% go away, but one day you will prove to Brock that he's an idiot for throwing you away..."_

With tears now streaking down his face, Steelix nodded sadly, doing his best to nuzzle back against the boy, earning a small chuckle from Ash who stopped hugging the giant pokemon, instead running a hand down his body as Steelix lowered the boy to the ground: " _Steelix...i know your not in the mood to train or anything, so you can sit over here as long as you want, were going to be staying here for at least the next week"_ Smiling and patting his tail gently, Ash pulled his pokedex out of his pocket before looking back to Steelix, " _Would it be alright if i scanned you? i'd like to know what moves you know...that way if you want to join us in training, we knwo what moves you know, and can learn"_

After Steelix nodded, Ash pointed the pokedex at Steelix and listened carefully: **Steelix, the Iron Snake Pokemon -** _Steelix's body is much harder than any metal as it is tempered underground under high pressure and heat._

 _This Steelix's ability is Rock Head, and knows the following moves:_ **Iron Tail, Dragon Breath, Mud Sport** _and_ **Dig**

Blinking at the small move-pool Steelix had, Ash looked up at the Iron Snake Pokemon with a confused frown, " _Didn't Brock teach you anything else? Did he just have you use these four attacks?"_ he asked, to which Steelix nodded, curiosity crossing his face at Ash's questions. Noticing the look, Ash showed Steelix some of his other Pokemon's pokedex entries, making Steelix's eyes widen t the amount of moves they each knew, " _The minimum amount of moves a pokemon can learn is one, and four is usually the limit, but it is possible to learn more than just the standard 4 attacks...its a little difficult at first but once a pokemon has mastered a 5 attack, the rest come much more easily"_ Ash explained, returning to Steelix's pokedex page, scrolling through the different moves he could learn.

" _Wow, you can learn a lot of amazing moves Steelix!"_ Ash exclaimed, making Steelix beam a little with pride, " **Crunch, Thunder Fang, Ice Fang, Fire Fang, Screech, Sandstorm, Earthquake, Rock Slide, Dragon Tail** _, even **Dark Pulse...** " _Ash spoke with amazement, looking up at Steelix who just shrugged his upper body, making Ash smile, patting the snake pokemon's tail gently once again, " _Like i said, its good to know...anyway, you relax here for a bit pal, I'm going to go train with the other's for a while okay?"_

Closing the pokedex, Ash placed it back inside his pocket, nodded at Steelix who curled back up, resting his head on his tail, watching with wonder as Ash walked over to his other pokemon who were waiting by the small pond.

* * *

Looking at each of his pokemon slowly, Ash nodded whilst in though and knelt down besides the group, " _Alright guys, here's the plan, Scrafty - Id like you to show Zangoose how to use_ **Drain Punch,** _whilst Charizard, I'd like you to take Houndoom and teach her_ **Smokescreen** _okay?"_ the four pokemon nodded, each going off into their respective pairs. Looking towards his other pokemon, Ash thought silently for a second before speaking up, " _Rhyperior - Could you show Hitmontop how to focus all of his weight into one area, then show him the rest in performing_ **Earthquake** _? Then Sceptile, take Infernape and show him you foot technique when using_ **Quick Attack,"**

Watching the pokemon nod and walk off, Ash turned to the remaining pokemon and smiled, " _As for you guys - Donphan, i want you to practice your_ **Giga Impact** _against the larger rocks and trees in this area: Remember, focus your energy in front of yourself"_ Donphan shouted happily, running of practice his newest learnt move. Looking to the remaining 4 pokemon, Ash clapped his hands, " _You guys are going to battle each other: Umbreon against Pidgeot, and Pikachu against Bayleef - Umbreon, use your_ **Double Team** _and_ **Quick Attack,** _to try and hit Pidgeot as much as you can, whilst Pidgeot, i want you to dodge as many as possible without using any attacks, you speed is fantastic already, but so is Umbreon's, so try as hard as you can alright?"_

Turning his attention to Bayleef and Pikachu as the previous two walked off to begin their battle, " _Pikachu, i want you to use your_ **Double Team** _in a similar fashion, but don't attack Bayleef - I want her to use her_ **Vine Whip** _to try and grab you - if she manages to catch you, add_ **Agility** _to your_ **Double Team** _, okay?"_

Watching as the two pokemon ran off to battle, Ash stood up, walking back over to Steelix, who raised its head and looked at Ash with a questioning look _, "Don't mind me pal, is it alright if i sit with you for a bit? Its been a little hectic the past few days and i could use some rest..."_ Ash asked, holding his hands up in defense, making Steelix nod silently, resting his head on his tail once again as Ash sat down, leaning back against his tail.

Grabbing his bag, Ash placed it next to Steelix before laying his on the bag, yawning and tipping his hat back, " _Wake me in an hour okay?"_ When Steelix grunted in reply, Ash smiled before slowly drifting of to sleep.

* * *

 **\- 25 Minutes Later -**

Ash groaned when he felt something hard push against the back of his head: reaching a hand up, Ash swatted at the object trying to wake him, " _5 more minutes..."_ He mumbled, nuzzling his face into his bag, drifting back to sleep.

Steelix frowned and shouted Pikachu over, who scampered over quickly: Rolling his eyes at his sometimes-lazy trainer, Pikachu shook the trainer, frowneing when he didn't wake up. Thinking for a second, Pikachu grinned almost evilly, his cheeks sparking as he charged a **Thunderbolt.**

 _"Arr!"_ Ash exclaimed as Pikachu released the **Thunderbolt:** opening his moth and letting out a small white puff of smoke, Ash sat up and glared at Pikachu, " _Pikachu! i told you to stop doing that!"_ Ash yelled in annoyance, rubbing his eyes and shaking the electricity off. Pikachu snickered slightly before his face turned serious, grabbing onto Ash's leg and tugging, pointing in the other direction, " _Pikapii! Pikachu-chuchu-Pika!"_

Blinking in confusion and tiredness, Ash followed Pikachu's finger: " _What the-?!"_ Ash started, Jumping to his feet, eyes widened when he sore his pokemon had surrounded something: quickly walking over to the group, Ash maneuvered his way through the pokemon, " _What is going on-?"_ Ash started, only to stop halfway through his sentence at the thing his pokemon had surrounded:

 _"A.J? Richie?"_


	9. TwoThree Friendly Faces?

In front of Ash, and surrounded by his pokemon stood two boys: the boy to the left stood just slightly taller than Ash, with dark green hair that spiked up, matching dark green eyes and small zig-zag like features under his eyes: His outfit consisted of a black/red short-sleeved t-shirt with a red turned up collar, dark blue shorts, red trainers and a black karate belt around his waist - on his back was a black and red bag-pack, but the most noticeable thing about the boy was the long whip in his right hand. In front of him stood a dark and sandy brown coloured pokemon with quills sticking out its back: A Sandslash!

Stood next to the whip wielding boy stood another boy, this one closer to Ash's height - though he was shorter by a few centimetres - with medium length spikey brown hair covered by with a dark blue and turquoise coloured hat: his outfit consisted of a turquoise open jacket that revealed a plain dark blue shirt, dark blue jeans and turquoise/ white sneakers - like the boy next to him, a pokemon stood in front of him, one Ash was all to familiar with: A Pikachu - although the Pikachu looked different to Ash's, having a tuff of its fur sticking out of its head.

 _"A.J? Richie?"_

At the sound of the names, the two boys looked away from the pokemon surrounding them, looking to Ash, looks of surprise and happiness on their faces, " _Ash?!"_ They ask simultaneously, the two pokemon in front of the boys stopping to look at their masters before following their gazes to Ash, both now sporting similar looks as the boys.

Looking at his pokemon, who were growling at the boys, Ash gave a short whistle to get their attention, " _Stand down guys, these two aren't threats...yet?"_ Ash told them, looking to A.J and Richie pointedly, nodding to his pokemon as they held their hands up to show him they meant know harm: Pikachu and Sandslash following suit, changing from their fighting position and stepping back.

Ash's pokemon relaxed slightly as the two new humans, and their pokemon stepped back, dispersing back to their previous activities - making sure to not wonder to far away, as they were still wary of the two strangers, but trusted Ash's judgment.

As the two sighed in relief, they looked to Ash as he asked them, " _Why are you here?"_

* * *

 **\- 10 Minutes later -**

The three boys were all sat by the small pond of water: Ash looked from A.J to Richie, waiting for one of them to start talking. Coughing slightly, making Ash look at him, Richie smiled slightly and began to explain, " _Me and AJ were just passing through the area, when Sparky stopped and ran off. I got worried when he didn't come back, so I ran after him, and A.J followed. We found him sniffing a bush on the side of the path, so I move it out the way to see if their was anything underneath it - and their was - a slop of some kind..."_ Richie stopped, indicating to the slop behind the group. Ash nodded slowly in understanding, moving to look at A.J who decided to continue the story, " _We got curious, so I sent Sandslash, and Richie sent Pikachu down to investigate the area"_ A.J explained, gesturing to the two mentioned pokemon who were sat next to them, " _It was quiet at first but then we heard a loud cry - like the sound a group of angry pokemon make - so we quickly followed down the slope to find a punch of pokemon surrounding Sandslash and Pikachu"_

Resting a hand on Sandslash's head and rubbing it gently, A.j continued, _"We got ready to fight them, then you appeared and calmed them all down...and now, here we are..."_ Ash listened carefully to the boys, watching their eyes and body language carefully for any hint of lies: but found none. A.J and Richie fidgeted nervously under Ash's gaze, growing worried when Ash stayed quiet after their explanation.

Looking down at his lap, where Pikachu was sat, listening to the explanation in a similar way to Ash - The two shared a look, nodding before looking up at the nervous duo, " _Okay, I believe you, now please leave"_ Ash's cold reply made the two boys look at him, shock on their faces.

Ignoring their looks, Ash watched as Pikachu jumped off his lap and walked back over to the other pokemon who were still training: Standing up, Ash turned from the boys, starting to make his way back over to Steelix who had been watching closely the entire time.

Whilst Richie stared at Ah's retreating form in disbelief and shock, A.J shot to his feet, following Ash quickly and grabbing his arm to stop him, an angry look on his face, " _Leave?! What the hell Ash?! We haven't see you in years, and this is how you-...Uh...Ash?"_ A.J started, growing concerned when Ash's body went stiff, his anger being replaced with fear as Ash turned and grabbed his hand, a cold look in his face, " _Do. Not. Touch. Me"_ Ash warned, throwing A.J's hand of him.

Richie snapped out of his shock at Ash's words, scrambling to his feet and running to A.J side, " _Were not like the others! We didn't betray you!"_ Richie shouted, making Ash' gaze warm up a little, but still held a small amount of coldness.

 _"Why should I believe you?"_ Ash asked warily, unsure whether to trust their words, _"Because we weren't their when they turned on you!"_ The two replied in desperation, making Ash stop and think.

 **"They weren't their? That is true, they weren't...hmmm...maybe their being honest..."** Ash thought to himself, looking at the duo in front of him, noticing the desperate, but honest looks on their faces.

Sighing, Ash closed his eyes, taking his hat off and running a hand through his hair, " _Alright I believe you...Sorry about how I was, just...its hard to trust people anymore..."_ Ash apologised, sighing again and placing his hat back on his head.

The two sighed in relief, watching as Ash walked forwards, stopping in front of Richie first and holding his hand up for a bro hug, to which Richie eagerly returned, the two patting each other on their backs, " _Its alright Ash, its good to see you again"_ Richie told the boy, pulling back and smiling as Ash gave A.J the same bro hug.

* * *

 **\- Later that evening -**

Richie and A.J looked at Ash as the three sat around a small fire: Deciding to break the silence, A.J coughed, making Ash look away from the small flames and to him, " _So Ash...What happened that day?"_ the green haired boy asked hesitantly, biting his lip hen he sore Ash tense up at his question, " _Y-you don't have to tell us if you don't wan-"_

" _I was on my home"_ Ash interrupted, casting his gaze back to the fire, gently stroking Pikachu's back, who had fallen asleep in his lap, " _I'd just finished the league in Unova, I managed to get to the Top 8, not my best but not terrible, I was happy with how I had done,"_ Ash started, a half smile on his face as he though back to the league, which quickly faded as he continued talking, A.J and Richie leaning forwards, listening intently, _Everything seemed normal at first: I got off the ship, raced Pikachu home...and lost..."_ his last remark made the duo in front of him chuckle lightly, even bring a small smile to Ash's face, " _When we got home, mom greeted me with a big hug, but something seemed off: she didn't ask me about Unova, and she didn't mention how I had done in the league...I didn't think much off it, but that all changed when she took me to the living room"_

 _"Their sat everyone I had travelled with: Brock, Misty, Tracy, May and Max, Dawn...even Cilan and Iris, who I though were back in Unova"_ Ash continued, his voice growing colder and colder as he listed off the names, " _But not just them, some of my old rivals were their...Trip and Paul...even Gary was their: I thought they were all their to congratulate me on my placement, maybe tell me about the next region I could explore"_

 _"I was wrong. So dam wrong. They all started shouting at me, telling me I was a failure of a trainer, that I would never be a pokemon master because I was a stupid kid who didn't train his pokemon properly...one of them, Iris, told me my pokemon didn't believe in me either"_

Shaking his head in anger, Ash continued, explaining how he went to see if it was true, only to find that most of his pokemon had sided with the others, " _Luckily, some of my pokemon stood by me...so I took them all and left to train"_

* * *

As Ash finished his story, A.J and Richie sat back, a rush of different emotions running through the two: Disbelief, Anger, Disappointment, Sympathy. As the two opened their mouths to comfort their friend, a rustling caused Ash's head to shoot up, his eyes flashing as he moved Pikachu off his lap, standing with a poke'ball in his hand, " _Show yourself"_ Ash commanded calmly, watching as the rustling continued.

A few seconds passed before a girl appeared: she was young - 12 at the most - with long brown hair. _"Who are you?"_ Ash asked, watching as the girl slowly stepped out of the bushes, " **She's shaking...maybe she's cold..."** Ash though, watching as the girl shook, her jeans and t-shirt clearly not providing the girl with any warmth.

" _I don't know who you are or how you got here...but your going to freeze if you don't get warm soon, come sit by the fire"_ Ash spoke gently to the girl, making A.J and Richie look at each other in confusion at the change in Ash's attitude. The unnamed girl shook as Ash invited her to the fire, her eyes darting between Ash, A.J and Richie.

With hesitation, she slowly walked towards Ash, stopping a few steps away from him, a look of hesitation and distrust on her face. Ash frowned a little, sensing the girls distrust and apprehensive feelings toward him and the others: thinking, Ash pulled his jumper off, revealing his tight long-sleeved shirt and held the shirt out to the girl " _Take it. I can tell you don't trust us, I respect that. But I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try and help someone freezing"_

Ash made a mental note to try and talk to the girl as she looked at his outstretched jumper, taking it slowly and pulling it on. Nodding, Ash looked back at Ritchie and A.J who had watched the whole exchange with curiosity, " _You guys get some sleep"_ The two opened their mouths to argue but quickly closed them when Ash gave them a pointed look, just nodding and reaching into their respective bags and pulling out their sleeping bags.

Looking back at the girl, Ash noticed she didn't have a bag with her. Deciding not to ask, Ash shifted his bag off his shoulders and reached inside, making the girl step back in fear, " _Don't be scared, I noticed you don't have a bag on you, so I'm getting my old sleeping bag to sleep in, I don't use it anymore"_ Ash reassured her, pulling out said item and handing it to her, watching as he face changed from fear to surprise once again.

Turning slightly, Ash looked around before walking over to a large boulder, sitting down and leanring against it: tilting his hat down and stretching his legs out, Ash began drifting to sleep - As he fell asleep he could have swore he heard a female voice talk to him, " _My name is Madison..."_

* * *

 ** _The character of Madison belongs to_** _emikat1234, **Thanks for the awesome OC!**_


	10. Maddison?

Looking up to the sky, Ash noticed that the sun was barley over the horizon, " **Not even dawn yet..."** he thought to himself, wiping the sweat from his forehead: The young boy had just finished his daily early morning jog, and was now waiting for his three unexpected guests to wake up. Stretching his arms up and behind his head, Ash yawned and walked over to the pond, kneeling down and splashing his face with the water.

Sighing as the cold water hit his sweating face, Ash gathered some of the water in his hands, running it though his hair before standing up and turning around to face his still sleeping companion's: Richie was completely flat out with one arm behind his head and the other placed gently on top of his Pikachu, Sparky. A.J was in a similar state of being flat out, but seemed to be completely tangled up in his own sleeping bag, which made Ash roll his eyes lightly with a smile, " **Reminds me of how I use to sleep..."**

Finally, the girl, " _Maddison..."_ Ash spoke quietly, remembering the name he had faintly heard the night before, turning his attention from the duo of sleeping boys to the young girl: at some time in the night she must have released one of her pokemon - being that stood next to the sleeping girls frame was a Servine that was glaring at Ash.

Deciding to leave the trio to sleep, Ash whistled lowly and crossed his arms, looking up at the trees patiently: soon a low rustle could be heard as a the blurred outline of Sceptile jumped through a few of the tree's before jumping down, landing in front of Ash on his knees. Nodding at Sceptile as he stood up, Ash handed him a twig, which Sceptile took quickly, placing it inside his mouth and smirking at Ash - who smirked back, " _Lets go for a walk buddy"_ Sceptile nodded, following Ash as he walked through the tree's, quickly falling into step with his trainer.

After walking silently for a few seconds, Ash stopped and turned to Sceptile with a smile, " _I knew you would up, your an early riser, I was thinking we could get some training done whilst the other's are asleep"_ Ash told his Hoenn-starter, who nodded in understand, uncrossing his arms and waiting for Ash's direction.

Looking around the area, Ash walked a few feat away, bending down to pick up some rocks, " _Lets start with your accuracy and control, when I throw these rocks in the air, I want you to use a single_ **Bullet Seed** _to hit it okay?"_ Ash instructed, making Sceptile raise an eyebrow at the boys command, " _this has no practicality in battle Sceptile, but that's not the goal, I know your accuracy is top-notch with a full attack, id like to see how you handle restricted attack usage, so if the circumstance comes when you ARE restricted, we will be ready...understand?"_ Ash explained, to which the calm grass pokemon contemplated it for a second before nodding.

With a smile Ash threw three rocks horizontally through the air, keeping his eyes on Sceptile: Grinding his teeth, Sceptile powered up the seeds in his mouth, but was struggling to keep the attack from all shooting out at once. Moving his hands to hold his cheeks, Sceptile fired a total of three seeds, all three shots missing the targets.

With a smile, Ash walked back over to Sceptile who was looking down with a glare, growling softly to himself in annoyance, " _Remember Sceptile, that was your first time, considering you managed to some-what control how many seeds you fired is impressive,"_ Ash praised the grumbling pokemon, who crossed his arms in reply, still not happy with his results, " _First lets work on controlling how many seeds you shot at any one time first, without using your hands, then later we can work on accuracy alright?_ Sceptile growled one more, but nod solemnly at his trainers reasoning, watching as Ash picked up the three once again and turned to him, " _First close your eyes and try and count the amount of seeds that are ready to be fired when you charge up_ **Bullet Seed** _..."_

* * *

 **\- 30 minutes later -**

Ash and Sceptile out of the trees and back into the clearing, smiles on both of there faces, " _You really progressed well with that Sceptile!"_ Ash praised, making Sceptile beam with pride: It had only taken him a couple times for him to focus on the amount of seeds in his mouth with-out the use of his hands to control them - He didn't have it fully mastered yet, but he was firing less and less seeds each time, getting down to 2 per shot.

Ash looked at Sceptile and motioned with his head to the tree's, " _could you go gather some berries please? Its almost breakfast..."_ With a nod, Sceptile jumped and disappeared into the trees once again.

Looking back to the clearing, Ash was greeted with Pikachu shouting, " _Pikapii!"_ As he ran up to Ash, jumping onto his shoulder and nuzzling his cheek happily, " _Good to see your awake pal, are the others up yet?"_ Ash asked the yellow mouse, who nodded and pointed to the other side of the small pond, where his pokemon were all starting to wake, _yawnhing_ and stretching their limbs.

Nodding in the pokemon's direction, Ash walked over to the pond and snapped his fingers, making his pokemon all turn and line up on the otherside, waiting for Ash's instructions, " _As we all remember, we had some unexpected visitors yesterday, just so you know, the two boys are named Richie and A.J. They are two trainers I met along time ago, but they have reassured me that they aren't on the traitors side - and so far have given me no reason to believe otherwise, so be nice okay?"_ Ash explained, his pokemon frowning at the possibility of other people being around their trainer unsettling them, " _Also, whilst you lot were asleep we had another visitor...This girl I don't know, I have never met her before, so I am wary, but I am warning you guys - be nice. She looks young and a little inexperienced, plus I get the feeling she is shy around other's so I'm willing to give her a chance"_ Ash continued, surprising himself and his pokemon at his words: Chances were something Ash was very reluctant to give.

Quickly changing the subject Ash looked at each pokemon, " _I know I said we would be training, but for now I actually want you guys to maybe relax or have some fun...I-its been a long time since I've been with other people, I want to work on my social skills alright?"_ Ash finished, making his pokemon look at each for a few seconds, before turning to Ash and nodding understandingly: they all understood how Ash struggled with large groups of people, maybe these three humans would be a good start.

Watching as his pokemon dispersed, Ash raised a brow when he noticed Umbreon walk over to him, as well as Pikachu staying on his shoulder, " _Let me guess...you guys want to stay with me whilst I try and socialise with the three right?"_ when the two pokemon nodded in reply, Ash smiled, rubbing both their heads gently, " _Thanks guys, I guess I could use the support"_

Turning away from the pond, Ash watched as both Ritchie and A.J began waking up: each sitting up and stretching - Sparky following suit, plus a yawn came from the tuffed hair Pikachu. Maddison seemed to have woke up during Ash's training, evident by the fact she was sat up in his sleeping bag, his jumper hanging off her smaller frame as the storkaed her Servines head gently.

Nodding to Maddison, who blushed and ducked her head, letting her hair cover her face, Ash looked to A.J and Richie, " _So you guys are finally awake? 'bout time"_ Ash playful told them, making them each groan: A.J ducked his head into his sleeping bag whilst Richie raised an arm to shield his eyes from the sun, " _What time Is it?"_ Richie asked sleepily, watching as Ash pulled out his pokedex to check the time, " _8:35"_

 _"WHAT?! Urgg, its basically still midnight!"_ A.J complained, moving his back out of the bag, throwing his hands over his eyes in annoyance - to which Ash just chuckled, " _I've been up for over an hour, I let you guys sleep in because you all looked tired last night"_ Richie and A.J both blinked in surprise at the information Ash gave them, looking at the boy in wonder: Just what else had changed about the lazy-yet-always-cheerful boy they once knew?

If Ash had noticed the looks he was shooting them, then he chose to ignore them, smiling when Sceptile appeared from the tree's carrying a bundle of berries, " _Thank you Sceptile, now, I told the others to go relx but I know you, so if you want, keep practicing what we were doing earlier, okay?"_ Sceptile nodded, disappearing into the tree's once more.

Looking to the berry pile Sceptile had left, Ash knelt down and sorted through them, " _Hmmm...nothing amazing, couple Oran Berries, a few Pecha and Rawst berries...common stuff"_ Ash spoke to himself, oblivious to the curious stares the others were giving him. Standing up and plucking 6 leaves from the surrounding tree's, Ash grabbed a mix of each of the berries and placed them in the leaves after he curved them to resemble bowels.

 _"Pikachu, Use a weak_ **Thundershock** _to relight the fire, Umbreon, see if you can find me 6 twigs with rounded ends"_ With a nod, Umbreon walked around the clearing, searching for the twigs his master had requested whilst Pikachu aimed his attack at the dead fire, letting lose his electricity and sparking the fire back to life. Umbreon returned not long after, the 6 twigs in his mouth which he dropped in front of Ash, " _Great Job guys, here, take these and fill them with water from the pond"_ Ash instructed, handing the two pokemon 6 larger leaves he had already taken from the tree's earlier.

Watching as the two ran to get the water, Ash placed each of the berry filled leaves on the rounded ends of the twigs, handing one to Richie and A.J, who shot Ash a confused look, " _Its your breakfast. hover the twigs over the fire slightly, not for to long though otherwise they will burn"_ Ash explained, demonstrating with his own berries, before taking the three and repeating.

Shrugging to each other, A.J and Richie got out their sleeping bags and shuffled over to the fire, repeating what Ash had shown them. Nodding at the two boys, Ash gently opened the four leaves and showed the cooked berries to the two, whose stomachs growled and mouths watered when the smell of the berries hit their noses, " _Be careful, they can be quiet hot, so try breaking them apart first to cool down"_ Ash finished, pulling a small switch army knife from his bag and slicing through each berry.

" _Pikapii! Umbreon!"_ Turning at the cries of his pokemon, Ash smiled and took the water filled leaves from the two pokemon, placing two in front of them before passing one each to A.J and Ritchie, " _The water here is clean enough, I had Bayleef and Sceptile purify it earlier, its not a lot, but take it or leave it..."_ Ash shrugged, placing two of leaves containing the now cut up berries in front of Pikachu and Umbreon, before standing up and walking towards Madison, who had been watching silently the entire time.

Stopping suddenly, Ash smiled and set the two leaves down and took a step back whilst looking at Servine, " _I've gathered your friend is shy, and that your protective, so ill take a small bite to show you they are harmless then you can give them to Maddison, okay?"_ Ash told the Unova-Grass pokemon, picking up one of the cooked berries and taking a small bite, keeping eye contact with Servine in order to show that he meant no harm to either of them.

Swallowing the berry and licking his lips, Ash watched as Servine released its vines, picking up the offered leaves and handing them to Maddison, who smiled at Servine and nodded at Ash, a quiet, " _Thank you"_ Escaping her lips as she slowly began to eat the berries.

 _"_ **I'll talk to her later..."** Ash thought to himself, leaving the duo alone to enjoy the meal. Walking back over to the other's Ash raised a brow when A.J and Richie were both lying on the floor, drool hanging from the mouths and stars in their eyes, " _Such...tasty...food..."_ A.J said dreamily, making Ash roll his eyes but smile nonetheless, picking the used leaves up and staking them in a neat pile besides him, finally picking up his own berries and taking a small bite, " _Glad to see you guys like them..."_

 **\- After Breakfast -**

Richie and A.J were all to keen to check out the different pokemon Ash had on him, so he invited them to go around the area and talk to them, warning them both to be careful.

Watching as the two ran off to search for his pokemon, Ash looked back towards Maddison, who was now out of the sleeping bag, stood a few feat away from him shuffling her feet awkwardly. Noticing that Servine was still stood close to its trainer, Ash though for a second before moving over and sitting on a log before looking up at Maddison and patting the spot next to him.

Servine growled, holding a hand out in front of Maddison. Holding his hands up, Ash shrugged and spoke to them calmly, " _I'm not going to hurt you guys, I just though we could get better equated if we sat on something more comfortable than a boulder or the floor..."_

Still growling, Servine went to disagree, but was stopped when Maddison placed a hand on the pokemon's head gently, " _Its okay..."_ She said gently, picking the grass snake up and walking over to the log, sitting down as far away from Ash as she could whilst still staying sitting on the log. After a few minutes passed with no words, Ash decided to break the silence, " _So you told me your name, but I didn't tell you mine, Its Ash Ketchum,"_ Looking up at Ash, Maddison was offered a hand for her to shake with she took shakily whispering back, " _Maddison..."_

 _"I know...you told me last night remember?"_ Ash chuckled, watching as Maddison blushed and hid behind her hair in embarrassment, making Servine growl again, " _Sorry...didn't mean to upset you or anything"_ Ash apologised quickly, thinking he had upset her from her reaction and the growls from Servine. Smiling from under her hair, Maddison glanced at Ash whilst placing a gentle hand on Servine's head, calming it down instantly, " _Y-You didn't...I-I...I-I'm just a little shy..."_ Her voice was so soft that Ash barley made it out, but smiled and nodded gently in understanding:

 _"I get that...sometimes I find it hard around other people to...its not always easy talking to new people..."_ His words made Maddison look at him in slight disbelief, " _B-b-but your t-talking to me...?._ She replied in confusion making Ash smile once more, " _I know, and your talking to me...sometimes those who can't talk to everyone can talk to each other..."_

Nodding at his own words, Ash leant back on the log, looking to the sky with a half smile, " _I don't know what it is...but you seem like someone who just needs someone to listen, instead of telling you what to do..."_ Ash mused out loud, making Servine and Maddison look at Ash in surprise: **"H-How does he know that?!"**

 **BOOM!**

Just as Maddison was about to reply, the conversation was cut off from a small explosion ripping through the clearing's air: Both Maddison and Ash blinked in shock and turned their heads, only to see Ritchie and A.J fall anime style, the bodies covered in soot, " _Looks like they met Charizard..."_ Ash chuckled, standing up and walking over to the two, " _You guys go to close to Charizard and he used_ **Flamethrower** _, right?"_

Taking the two groans as a "yes",, Ash laughed at the two, hiding a smile when he heard Maddison let out a small chuckle, " _I warned you guys"_


	11. Cerulean City Gym

**= One Week Later -**

Ash stood at the the top of the slope, Pikachu on his shoulder and Maddison near him, standing a small distance from Ash's side, Servine held in her arms: Looking down the slope at the field, Ash watched in amusement as Richie and A/J packed their bags, the 4 trainers ready to leave the area. Richie was busy trying to pull his sleeping bag from Sparky, who was stretched out on top of it, shouting, " _Pi-Pikachu!"_ In protest, making Richie groan in frustration.

 _"Come on Sparky! Its time to go! Ash and Maddison are waiting for us!"_ Richie argued back, shooting his yellow mouse pokemon an annoyed glare, making Sparky just huff, before grinning, jumping off the sleeping bag as Richie pulled making the boy fall onto his backside with a grunt, " _SPARKY!"_ Richie shouted, standing up with a glare at the pokemon, who was holding his stomach as he laughed loudly at his trainer's fall, " _Dammit, Ash's Pikachu is really rubbing off on you..."_ Grumbled the brown hair boy, snatching the sleeping bag up and stuffing it in his bag, choosing to ignore the still laughing Sparky.

A.j on the other-hand had was already packed and ready to go, but seemed to want to push his look via trying to get close to Charizard once again: Slowly approaching the Fire-Starter from behind, A.j gulped when he snapped on a small stick, making Charizard sharply turn its head to glare at the approaching green-haired boy. Holding his hands up, A.J looked at the pokemon desperately, " _H-hey! i don't want to start anything, I-i just wanted to apologized for the other day!"_ He pleaded, watching as Charizard raise a brow at the trainer, looking him up and down, before grunting and turning his head away with a smirk: A.J sighed in relief, thinking he was safe, but yelped in surprise when Charizard turned his head back and shot a **Flamethrower** at him, making him fall backwards, his face and upper body blackened from the attack as Charizard growled out a laugh.

" _That means he forgives you!"_ Ash shouted down to A.J, who sat up and coughed a little, looking back at Ash in bewilderment, making Ash shrug, " _You can tell, the last time his_ **Flamethrower** _was brighter red from annoyance, this one was less red and more yellow, it means he is playing around"_ Ash explained, having been hit with enough of his Charizard's **Flamethrowers** to understand the differences between them.

Ash continued to smile as A.J huffed, wiping the remains of the attack of his face and shirt: turning his attention to Maddison, who was looking down at the Servine with a smile, Ash coughed a little, making her look up at him through the splits in her hair that she seemed to enjoy hiding behind - at least that's what Ash had gathered from being around the girl for the past week, " _You sure you want to come with us Maddison? I know you don't like being around people much...even i'm a little apprehensive to travel with those two,"_ Ash started, pointing to the two boys now stood at the base of the slope, shouting up offended, " _Hey!"_ Making Ash roll his eyes, " _Moving on...if you don't want to travel with us, we wont be offended at all..."_

Looking up at the 15-year-old boy in front of her, Maddison moved a hand to tuck one side of her hair behind her ear, revealing a shy but somewhat trusting green eye to Ash. " _I-I'm sure...L-Like you said...S-S-Sometimes those who can't talk, c-can talk to each other..."_ She replied, repeating the words Ash had said to her that day: words that had been stuck in her head the whole week as she very slowly opened up to Ash.

Nodding towards the long-haired girl, Ash looked down the slope and raised a brow at the two boys eavesdropping on the conversation, " _Are you guys going to just stand and stare, or are you going to climb the slope and get a move-on?"_ Ash commented, raising a brow at the knowing look the two boys shared, small smirks on their faces, **"I'll ask them later"** He though, watching as the two climbed the slope.

Nodding, Ash called Charizard, who flew over to the group, watching as Ash threw another poke'ball in the air, revealing Pidgeot who cawed and stretched her wings, " _Alright, Richie, A.J, you guys hop on Pidgeot, me and Maddison will take Charizard"_ Ash told the three trainers, ignoring the same knowing look from A.J and Richie as they climbed onto Pidgeot, " _Alright Pidgeot, us and Charizard will fly ahead, you guys follow behind okay?"_ Pidgeot nodded, flapping her wings, waiting to take off.

Petting her feathers gently, Ash walked over to Charizard and climbed on his back, looking down at Maddison with a smile as he offered her his hand, " _Come on, We can get to Ceruleon City faster this way, don't worry about Charizard, he wont attack you, right Charizard?"_ Ash reassured Maddison, giving Charizard a pointed look when he noticed the small amount of fear on the girls face.

Charizard grunted but nodded, holding two of claws up and crossing his heart with his others, making Maddison giggle slightly at the flying lizard: with slight hesitation, she took Ash's offered hand and climbed onto Charizard's back, raising a poke'ball before hand to return Servine. As Charizard took off into the air, Maddison let out a small, " _eep!"_ moving her hands around Ash's waist and clinging onto him, making Ash smile, " **She's just like a little sister...** Ash thought, as Richie and A.J noticed her grab his waist, smirking to each over, both thinking the same thing, " **They so have crushes on each other"**

* * *

 **\- 1 hour later -**

Charizard grunted as he landed, flapping his wings slowly as his feet touched the ground: Pidgeot doing the same as she followed closely behind. Patting Charizard's head gently in thanks, Ash went to climb down, but stopped when he realized that Maddison's arm where still tightly wrapped around his waist: looking back at her, Ash gave a half smile when he noticed that here eyes were squeezed shut, " _Maddison, we've landed, you can let me go now..."_ At Ash's words, Maddison slowly opened her yes, looking around to see that they had indeed landed, blushing a little, she quickly moved her arms form around Ash's waist, ducking her face behind her hair once again.

With a playful laugh, Ash hoped off Charizard's back, offering Maddison his hand which she took, helping of his back as Charizard yawned and stretched his neck, " _Thanks a lot Charizard, return"_ Thanking Charizard who shot Ash a thumbs up, he returned the fire-type and turned to Pidgeot, who had landed, Richie and A.J having already climbed of her back, " _You two Pidgeot, thanks, you take a rest, return"_

After the his two flying type pokemon had returned, Ash clipped their poke'balls to his new belt that now how enough clips to hold up to 15 poke'balls when they were shrunk: A.J had given Ash the belt after Ash had noticed the boy wearing a similar one, the green hair boy saying that he made it so he could keep all his pokemon on him.

Shifting his bag slightly, Ash turned to face forwards, making out the outline's of the Cerulean City gym over the tree's: looking at the Richie who stood to the left of him, A.J who stood to the right, and Maddison who stood a few steps behind him, Ash smiled and nodded, " _Lets go"_

* * *

After walking for a few minutes, Ash had decided to hang back and walk with Maddison,A.J and Richie, who had struck up a convesation about the different pokemon they each have, now walking a head of the two slightly, " _Well i have my buddy Sparky, obviously! But i also have Zippo, my Charmelion, Rose my Swellow, Happy - My Butterfree, Cruise, my Tyranitar, I also have Jack the Fearow, Illusion the Tentacruel and Blair, my Flareon"_ Ash heard Richie tell A.J, making a note in his head about the pokemon Richie had with him.

As Richie went on to explain to A.J why he nicknamed his pokemon and why he chose the names specifically, Ash looked at Maddison walking next to him, her body still slightly tensed up, " _Hey Maddison..."_ Ash started, stopping his walking to stand and look at the girl, who had stopped at the sound of her name to glance at Ash shyly, " _I was just wondering, what kind of pokemon you have? I know you have your Servine, she hasn't left your side the whole week but i haven't seen you with any other pokemon..."_

 _"Her name is Nagini..."_ Maddison started, making Ash nod in understand, " _Sorry, I know you have Nagini, your Servine"_ Ash corrected himself, watching as Maddison reached to her belt and held out two new poke'balls: a normal red and white one, and a yellow and black one - an Ultra ball.

Maddison threw the two balls into the air, watching as her two other pokemon appeared before the two: the first to materialize was a powerful looking Mienshao, a pokemon covered in white and purple fur. With a a cry of its name, the long-armed pokemon stretched and looked at Maddison with a smile, before noticing Ash and getting into a defensive position in front of the girl, " _I-its okay Maya...A-Ash is a...f-f-friend...?"_ Maddison reassured Mienshao, saying "Friend" questionably towards Ash who smiled and nodded, " _Friend"_ Ash confirmed with a smile, making the clearly name Maya relax her position, allowing Ash to walk closer to inspect her.

Reaching into his pocket, Ash pulled out his pokedex and scanned Maddison's second pokemon; **Mienshao** , the **Martial Arts** **Pokemon** and the evolved form of Mienfoo. Mienshao's arm attacks are so fast they're almost invisible. It uses its long arm fur as a whip.

Nodding to himself as he closed the pokedex for a second, he looked over Maya, gently running a hand over her fur: Maddison's eyes widen as she went to stop Ash, but was surprised when Maya purred gently, clarly enjoying what Ash was doing, " _She's got very soft fur - A good sign that's she's healthy, she also looks very strong, you did a good job raising her"_ Ash commented, removing his hand for Maya, who smiled and held one of her whip like arms to her chest proudly.

 _"Wow...Maya never lets anyone touch her. except me..."_ Maddison noted out loud, clearly amazed at Ash's ability to get along with any pokemon he wanted to: With a smile, Ash went to reply but stopped when he heard a small, " _Lit-wick..."_ Looking down, Ash finally noticed the small candle shaped pokemon hiding behind Maddison's leg. With a smile, Ash knelt down and offered his hand out to the small pokemon, " _Sorry pal, i didn't see you their...don't worry i wont hurt you..."_ Ash spoke gently, a voice he reserved for nerviouse or scared pokemon.

Pocking his head head from behind Maddison's leg, his arms still clinging to his trainers leg, Litwick looked at the offered hand fearfully as tears began to gather in the small Pokemon's eyes, his clearly shiny blue flame jumping up as he began to cry: Pulling his hand back and looking to Maddison in worry, who just looked bent down and picked the crying pokemon up, cradling him in her arms like a baby, " _Its okay Lumiere"_ She reassured the now named Lumiere, rocking him gently as his cries died down till he fell asleep.

Smiing as he fell asleep, Maddison returned both the two new pokemon before glancing at Ash, who had a small look of wonder and question, " _Lumiere is a new born...he is only a few weeks old, and when he was born, he was picked on for looking different and being smaller than normal, so now he always cries around strangers..."_ Maddison explain quetly, making Ash nod in understanding.

" _Makes sense, being a shiny pokemon can be difficult i supp-"_

 _"HEY! Are you guys coming on not?!"_ The trainers blinked and looked towards the sound of A.J's voice, noticing him and Richie waiting for the two talking trainers near an opening in the tree line, " _Yeah! Come on! The gym is right here!"_ Richie agreed, pointing thorugh the opening to the gym that stood just ahead of the two boys.

Looking at each other, Maddison and Ash gave a small laugh, turning and running to catch up to the two impatient boys, " _Yeah, were coming!"_


	12. Ash VS Misty

Looking up at the Gym, Ash started to grow nervous: Brock was one thing - considering he actually hadn't said anything at the moment of betrayal, just nodded in agreement, but Misty had been the first one to shout at him, and he remembered how easily angered the orange hair girl was, " **Especially when I beat her, she will be madder than ever"** Ash though to himself, raising a shaky hand to grip the handle on the Gym doors.

Noticing Ash's nervousness, Richie placed a hand on his shoulder, making Ash turn to look at him, his nervousness more clear from the look on his face, " _You don't have to do this Ash"_ Ritchie started, giving Ash a calm but sympathetic look, " _No I do, I do have to do this Ritchie,"_ Ash interrupted, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes: opening his eyes, the nervousness was replaced by confidence, and a hint of something that Richie couldn't put his finger on.

Placing a hand on his other shoulder, A.J stood to the other side of Ash, making him switch his attention to the *wild pokemon trainer* who smiled at Ash and patted his shoulder, " _You go for it Ash, all three of us will be their for you, right guys?"_ Richie nodded in agreement whilst Maddison nodded gently in reply, still a few steps behind the group: Smiling and nodding in thanks, Ash turned his attention back to the door and pushed it open aggressively, shouting as he walked in, " _Ready to fight Misty?"_

* * *

Misty had been sat by the pool side, her feet dipped into the pool as she relaxed with a smile, " _Kinda nice to relax..."_ She spoke to herself as she relaxed from the water soaking her feet. But her peace didn't last, before she knew it the doors to the Gym had been swung open and a voice she though she would never here again shouted, " _Ready to fight Misty?"_

With her arms now shaking as anger began to bubble deep inside her stomach, Misty slowly stood up and faced her *once-upon-a-time" best friend: She had a feeling he might come here, Brock had called her other a week ago and told her about his battle with Ash - Initially the water type trainer was furious at the idea of Ash having returned, but it didn't take long till she sore the great opportunity to take her revenge on the raven-haired boy, so she started training herself to prepare for Ash's arrival.

Finally turning to face Ash, Misty's eyes narrowed in a cold glare at the boy, not noticing the three people clearly with him, " _So your finally her? Bout time, here I though you had run off again before you were going to face me"_ She spat at the boy, who raised a bro, clearly confused at how she knew he was coming, making her smirk, " _Brock called me, he told me how you cheated in the battle then stole his Steelix! There really is no limit to what you will do is there?! Still as pathetic as ever..."_ She explained, shaking her head and crossing her arms, " _But you can't cheat here, because me and you? were going to battle in front of my sisters! that way when you cheat, their will be witnesses!"_

Ash's eyes stared back at Misty in shock at her words: Brock TOLD her that he STOLE his Steelix?! The anger and hatred for the breeder began to grow more and more, but before he could say anything, Richie stepped forwards, glaring at Misty, " _How DARE you accuse Ash of cheating and stealing!"_ Misty blinked, finally noticing the three people who stood with Ash, " _Ash would never cheat! And he didn't steal Steelix! Brock ABANDONDED him! Threw him away like trash!"_ A.J joined the conversation, anger evident in his own eyes, " _I was right what I said all that time again, Ash got his badges from two REAL loser gyms!"_

Ash smiled at the boys as they stood up for him, leaning back and grabbing Maddison's hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze, who had stepped back in fear at the words Misty said: As Ash was about to sooth her worries, Misty began to laugh. A loud obnoxious kind of laugh as she looked between Richie and A.J, _"So that's what that loser told you? humph, guess you guys will believe anything that guy says, but it doesn't matter what you think, ill prove to everyone that Ash Ketchum is the scum of the earth! Now shut up and lets fight!_

* * *

 **\- 5 minutes later, on the Gym battle field-**

Ash and Misty made their way to their respected sides of the battle field as Richie, A.J and Maddison sat down in the stands: A.J and Richie with their hands balled up in excitement to see Ash battle, whilst Maddison sat back quietly, her eyes trained to the field in curiosity - The only pokemon of Ash's pokemon she had met were Pikachu, Pidgeot and Charizard, she wondered what other pokemon Ash had.

 _"So like, this will be like, a two-on-two between Misty Waterflower from Cerulean City, and Ash Ketchum from Pallet tow-"_ Misty's sister, Lilly started, _"Mount_ _Silver not Pallet Town"_ Ash interrupted coldly, his eyes as cold as his voice was: Lilly shrugged and continued, " _Ash Ketchum from Mount Silver, first one to 0 pokemon is the loser, like, let the battle begin!"_

 _"Lets do this! Misty calls Starmie to the field!"_ Misty announced, calling out her signature pokemon: the purple star shaped pokemon landed on the platform with a loud, " _Hyah!"_ Its red center blinking as both it and Misty waited for Ash to call his own pokemon.

Reaching for his own poke'ball, Ash pressed the center silently, slightly unnerving Misty as the boy in front of her didn't announce his pokemon like he use to, " _Tile"_ Sceptile stated calmly, placing his signature twig in his mouth like normal, " **I got the ask Sceptile where he hides those things..."** Ash thought as he watched his Hoenn started pulled the twig out.

 _"The first battle will be like, between Starmie and Sceptile, like, begin!"_ Lilly spoke up, making Ash roll his eyes: the whole " _Like_ " thing in her sentences, were really annoying.

* * *

 **-In The Stands-**

 _"Wow a Sceptile!"_ Richie exclaimed, watching as Ash released his pokemon - A.J nodded and crossed his arms, look between Misty and Ash, " _Ash has the advantage, this could be a quick battle"_ A.J commented, leaning back to a similar position as Maddison, who had pulled out her own green pokedex, pointing it towards Sceptile:

 **Sceptile** , the **Forest Pokémon,**

 _Its arms are equipped with razor-sharp leaves, and it moves lightly through tree branches in order to attack its enemies_

Closing her pokedex, Maddison looked at Sceptile in curiosity: it was a grass type like her own starter, maybe she could catch one...

* * *

 **\- Starmie V.S Sceptile -**

 _"Don't think just because you have type advantage that you will win! Lets do this, Starmie use_ **Ice Beam!"** Misty commanded, thinking that one hit from an **Ice Beam** would easily knock out any of Ash's pokemon: _"Hyah!"_ Starmie shouted, shooting the super effective move from the tip of one of its star ends, jumping in the air as it did so.

Watching silently as the attack hurdled towards Sceptile, Ash spoke calmly, " **Energy Ball** " Sceptile open his mouth, gathering the green energy in his mouth before shooting a single one, watching as it collided with the **Ice Beam** , the moves cancelling each other out with a small explosion.

 _Coughing a little as the smoke from the mini explosion cleared, Misty growled and shouted, "_ _Dumb luck, Starmie use_ **Thunder Wave!"** Starmie quickly followed its orders, charging a small amount of electricity in both the star tips on its sides, shooting the electricity towards Sceptile, hitting the grass-type who grunted a little as the electricity coursed through his body.

Grinning as the attack hit the grass type, Misty called out cockily, " _Easy...Whilst its stuck, use_ **Water Pulse!"** Ash watched as the purple star shaped pokemon's star tip in the center began glowing, a sphere shaped water ball appeared as it continued to shoot the electricity through the Sceptile, quickly shooting the attack towards the paralyzed pokemon.

 _"Wait till the last second, then use_ **Single Bullet Seed** _and_ **Protect"** Ash ordered, making Misty scoff at the order, thinking his command sound completely stupid: Sceptile nodded, smirking to himself as Misty scoffed - watching and waiting as the sphere of water grew closer, Sceptile quickly summoned a single seed in his mouth, focusing all his power on the attack, shooting said seed as the **Water Pulse** was just a few seconds away from hitting him.

Watching with a nod as Sceptile shot the bullet, Ash couldn't help but feel a sense of pride at how far Sceptile had come with the single seed attack: his pride seemingly growing as the single seed easily destroyed the **Water Pulse** , not stopping after it hit the attack and hitting Starmie crystal center: " _Hyah!"_ Starmie shouted in pain, feeling a small crack in its red center, only to be surprised when Sceptile easily threw up his **Protect,** actually repelling the **Thunder Wave** back towards Starmie, striking it and making it fall back, small bits of electricity coursing through its body.

 _"Starmie! Dammit! Get in the water and use_ **Recover!"** Misty ordered angrily, secretly Impressed at the tactic Ash had used - Starmie grunted and slowly moved itself till it fell into the water with a small splash, its body starting to glow a faint white colour. Ash watched silently, staying silent as Misty ordered Starmie to recover, not ordering Sceptile to do anything.

Misty smirked as Starmie fully healed itself, paralysis included _, "Great Job! Come back up and use_ **Ice Beam** _once more!"_ Misty exclaimed, watching as Starmie began swimming quickly towards the water's surface - Just as Starmie broke through the surface, jumping into the air, Ash ordered quickly, " _Use_ **Leaf Scissor"** before anyone could blink, Sceptile jumped forwards, the blades on his arms glowing dark green whilst his hands and arms glowed a yellow colour: slashing his arms, quickly followed by his blades, Sceptile hit Starmie center crystal once again, his glowing arm's cracking the center whilst his blades finally broke through, sending Starmie flying backwards, smashing into the wall.

" _NO STARMIE!"_ Misty shouted, shielding her eyes from the bits of wall flying around her as Starmie hit the wall, jumping down from the stand and running towards the star pokemon as it slide down the wall to the floor, its red center flashing, indicating it had fainted, " _Are you okay Starmie? You did your best, return"_

* * *

 **\- Back In The Stands -**

 _"Smart thinking"_ A.J commented, nodding to himself as he watch Sceptile hit Starmie: both Maddison and Ritchie turned to A.J with confused look - noticing their looks of confusion, A.J began explaining, " _He knew Sceptile couldn't really attack Starmie whilst it was in the water, so he waited for it to come out, striking it with two super effective attacks just as it recovered some of its energy"_

Richie nodded in understanding whilst Maddison still wore a confused look but stayed quiet, deciding to turn her attention back to the field with one though in her mind, " **Maybe Ash could teach me some techniques..."**

* * *

Standing up and handing her poke'ball to her other sister, Misty climbed back up to her side of t he field, her face starting to go red from anger as she enlarged her second poke'ball, " _You just got lucky punk! You won't beat my next pokemon!_ _Go Croconaw!"_ Misty shouted, throwing her poke'ball in the air, watching with a smirk as her newly evolved Croconaw appeared in front of her, doing his typical happy dance he use to do as a Totodile as it landed on the platform floating in the water, " _This one seem familiar to you?"_

Misty was surprised when Ash didn't react in the way she expected: She expected the boy to get all upset and start crying like a baby at the appearance of one of his old pokemon now on her team - but it didn't happen.

After Ash praised Sceptile and returned him, he watched Misty call her second pokemon: He just looked at Croconaw, his face showing no emotion as Croconaw took notice of the boy, stopping mid dance to look as Ash in shock, " _Heh, its funny, looks like you DID get Totodile after all"_ Ash chuckled out lowly, making Misty blink in shock before her smirk returned to her face, " _Totodile just realised that I was supposed to be the one to catch him, if he stayed with you, he would still be a Totodile, right Croconaw? Croconaw?"_ Misty bragged to him, looking to Croconaw who was still frozen in shock at the appearance of his old trainer.

Quickly shaking it off, Croconaw hesitantly nodded and shouted his name in agreement, " _Croc-Croconaw!"_ before flexing his arm muscles - though a voice in the back of Croconaw's head was telling him, " **You should have stayed with Ash, he was your friend"**

Noticing Croconaw's hesitation, Ash raised a brow but let it slip, thinking it was just the surprise of seeing him again: reaching to his belt, Ash enlarged his own poke'ball, throwing it up silently, " _Pidgeot!"_ Pidgeot cried, flying around the room for a brief second before landing on the other platform, her wings spread out as she glared down at both Misty and Croconaw.

Upon hearing the familiar cry, Misty's eyes widen, following Pidgeot around the room as she flew, her eyes trained to the bird as she landed on the platform. After a few seconds of silence, her face began turning into a big grin as she laughed loudly, pointing a finger at Pidgeot, " _So you made Pidgeot leave its flock just to join you?! ha! see what I said, pathetic! Bet she doesn't even know about how much you failed as a trainer!"_

Pidgeot cried loudly in anger at the accusations being thrown at her trainer: " **How dare she say such horrible things?!"** _"Its okay Pidgeot, she's just trying to upset us, its not worth getting upset over words from her, they mean nothing"_ Ash's voice snapped Pidgeot out of her anger, lowering her wings which she had raised in anger and nodding at Ash's words - she knew he was right, but the accusation made her so angry!

Misty's face starting turning a dark shade of red, either from anger or embarrassment, " **Probably anger"** Ash thought as he sore her face going red - " _Shut up! we will show you who doesn't matter! Croconaw use_ **Double Team** _and_ **Water Gun!** _"_ Misty shouted angrily, stomping her foot as Croconaw quickly duplicated itself till 9 clones stood on its platform: each clone took a deep breath and shot a barrel of water towards Pidgeot.

 _"Take it"_ Ash ordered, making everyone in the room, even Misty, blink in surprise - Pidgeot followed orders, standing completely still as the water hit her, _"Alright! A direct hit!"_ Misty celebrated, pumping a fist in the air, _"Don't be so sure"_ Ash's words made Misty look to him in confusion and annoyance, before she turned and looked at Pidgeot, only to gawk in shock at what she sore - Pidgeot had raised both her wings to take the hit! Pidgeot flung her wings out, sending the water off her wings.

 _"Take to the skies"_ Ash commanded, smirking to himself when he sore the frustration growing on Misty's face - She just couldn't land a hit on any of his pokemon. Pidgeot spread her wings and shot into the sky, flapping her wings to float in the air, " _Don't let up! Jump in the water and use multiple_ **Water guns!"** Misty roared in frustration, watching as all the Croconaw clones jumped into the water, firing of the water attack from all over the water pool.

 _"Use_ **Double Team** _and_ **Agility"** Ash called out calmly, not calling the usual name he used for the combination - As Pidgeot wasn't use to the combo move name yet - Pidgeot easily duplicated herself dozens of times until the whole room seemed to be full with Pidgeot's: before anyone could say anything about the amount of clones in the room, they all began speeding around so fast, they all became a blur, the combination of brown and cream colours almost resembling one, gigantic Pidgeot.

Whilst Misty and the others were trying to hide the amazement at the sheer speed of his Pidgeot, Ash quickly called out to her, " _Use_ **Quick Attack** _to dive into the water, then use_ **Agility** _and_ **Arial Ace"** As each Pidgeot clone stopped mid flight, they all began diving with there beaks surrounded with white light, Misty shouted, " _GET OUT THE WATER CROCONAW!"_ But it was too late, Pidgeot had already reached the water, quickly zooming through the water with her **Agility,** Knocking out every clone of Croconaw, eventually hitting the real one, propelling it into the air as he cried his name, " _Croconaw!"_

 _"Fly up and use_ **Wing Attack"** Ash called, watching as Pidgeot emerged from the water, flying straight towards Croconaw with her wings glowing bright white: " _Snap out of it Croconaw! Use_ **Ice Punch!"** Misty shouted, making Croconaw open his eyes, quickly straightening out his posture and rearing his fist back - which was now glowing light blue and white as ice began to form around his fist.

Not anticipating the attack, Ash shouted out, " _Divert!"_ But this time he was too late: Pidgeot was too close to Croconaw, who swung his fist, narrowly missing Pidgeot's **Wing Attack** , nailing Pidgeot in the chest, sending her flying backwards, her chest feathers now having a thin layer of ice over them. Misty grinned but decided not to gloat - she need to act fast - " _Quick, use_ **Aqua Jet** _whilst their distracted!"_ She called, watching as Croconaw landed safely on the platform, surrounding himself with water, jumping and hurdling towards Pidgeot, hitting her square in the chest, shattering the ice - causing it to pierce into Pidgeot who started falling, her body slightly bruised.

* * *

 **-In The stands -**

" _Pidgeot!"_ The three trainers cried in worry, even Maddison joining in, getting to her feet as she watched the bird pokemon tumbled towards the water.

 _"Misty! Like, help Pidgeot!"_ Misty's sisters called to her from the other stands, each of there eyes going wide when they heard Misty shout out, " _Use_ **Ice Punch** _again!"_

* * *

Croconaw looked back at Misty in shock, shaking his head, " _Naw-Croconaw!"_ He protested - they had already won! if he attacked again he would just be hurting Pidgeot: _"I SAID USE **ICE PUNCH!"**_ Misty screeched, making everyone look at her in shock - everyone but Ash.

 _"Pidgeot!"_ Ash shouted for the first time in fear, quickly jumping into the water as Pidgeot fell into the water and started sinking: quickly swimming underneath the fallen bird, and using the counter force of the water pressure, Ash used all his might and pushed Pidgeot up, swimming her back to the surface.

As they resurfaced, Ash gasped for air, but didn't waist any time, pushing Pidgeot over to the platform, climbing up onto it and pulling the soaked bird with him, " _Pidgeot! are you alright?!"_ Ash cried out, tears starting to well in his eyes as he brushed his hands over Pidgeot's feathers, crying out in relief when she opened her eyes slightly with a soft, " _Pidgeot..."_ Wrapping his arms around the bird pokemon, ash hugged the bird pokemon in happiness, pulling back when he felt her lift a wing and hug him back: with a watery smile he held her poke'ball and returned her, " _You did great buddy, you take a well deserved rest"_

Looking at Pidgeot's poke'ball with a relieved smile and sigh, Ash stood up and placed her poke'ball back on his belt: Suddenly, Ash swung around, anger and hatred in his eyes as he glared at Misty, who wore a face of annoyance as she shouted at Croconaw, " _HOW DARE YOU! FIRST YOU TRY AND HIT HER WITH ANOTHER ATTACK AS SHE FELL, BUT YOU LET HER NEARLY DROWN!"_ Ash roared in fury, to which Misty just shrugged, clearly not caring whilst Croconaw was, to Ash's and Misty's surprise, glaring at the water-type trainer as well - During that time, A.J, Richie and Maddison had all ran from the stands to Ash's side, whilst Misty's sister's had ran to her side - A.J, Richie and Maddison sporting upset and angry looks whilst Misty's sisters sported upset but confused and shock looks.

 _Its not my job to look after your pokemon"_ Misty retorted, making her sister's look at each others in shock - who was this girl that use to be their sweet, but hot-headed sister? This person was just cruel.

Ash shook in anger as he climbed of the platform and back on his side, hatred now filling his eyes and replacing anger: as he was about to retort, he herd non more than Lilly shout, " _Like, this battle is over! Ash, like, get your Pidgeot to a center now!"_ Ash blinked but nodded, jumping down from the podium and running out the Gym - Richie, A.J and Maddison close behind him

Misty went to protest, but stopped when she sore the angry glares of her sisters pointed at her: she knew she was in trouble. Deciding to deal with Ash later, she lifted Croconaw's poke'ball and tried returning him, but was surprised when the crocodile pokemon jumped and snatched the poke'ball out her hand, as well as swiping another one from her belt with his hand: " _HEY! GET BACK HERE!"_ Misty shouted, getting ready to chase Croconaw, but was stopped by her sister's who all grabbed her arms.

Misty growled as she watched Croconaw run after Ash, his and the other poke'ball clasped securely in his jaws.


	13. Nameless Chapter

With the sound of blood pumping through his ears, Ash ran as fast as he could, Pikachu cat his side running as fast as he could, harrowing looks on their faces as they burst into the pokemon center, making everyone in the room jump and turn to look at Ash with surprised eyes: " _Ash?!"_ two voices exclaimed, but Ash didn't notice, instead running up to a surprised Nurse Joy who had stopped typing on her computer to look at the boy.

" _Nurse Joy! Please help Pidgeot!"_ Ash begged, thrusting said pokemon's poke'ball forwards, tears beginning to accumulate in his eyes once more: Nurse Joy composed herself quickly, taking the poke'ball from the boy - **"he is clearly in distress, his pokemon must be severely injured"** Nurse Joy thought as she called Chansey over, both of them disappearing into the back room, the red light above the room turning on to signal they were busy.

* * *

After Nurse Joy took Pidgeot from him, Ash had moved himself over the seating area just outside the operating room. Moving his hat to his side, Ash ran his fingers through his hair in worry, constantly glancing at the room Nurse Joy had gone into in worry: the other trainers in the room had stopped looking at Ash, understanding he was just a trainer worrying about his pokemon - with the exception of two trainers who slowly made their way over to the stressing boy.

" _Ash?"_ At the sound of the two voices, Ash looked away from the room and to the sound of the voices, his eyes widening in surprise at who had called his name: " _Jason? Natalie?"_ Ash replied in surprise, having not seen the two since their last encounter at the Pokemon Center by Mount Silver. As Natalie opened her mouth to speak, they were interrupted, as Ritchie, A.J and Maddison entered the Center in a similar fashion to how Ash how arrived.

Looking around, the three quickly found Ash and ran over to him, pushing past Jason and Natalie to get to the boy, " _Ash! Where's Pidgeot? Is she okay?"_ Richie asked in concern, noticing the missing poke'ball from Ash's hand, already knowing it wasn't clipped to his belt. Ash's face quickly went back to worrisome, turning his head to look at the operating room, " _She's in their, with Nurse Joy"_

The three trainers all looked towards operating room before looking back at Ash sadly: they could see how much their friend was worrying, which worried them - they were also still in a small state of anger and shock at the way Misty had treated Pidgeot, especially for a _**GYM LEADER**_. Just as A.J went to open his mouth he was cut off by two, " _Hey's!"_ Making him and Ritchie turn to Jason and Natalie, who were looking at them with annoyed faces - whilst Maddison chose to ignore the voices and sat down next to Ash, repeating what he had done earlier and took his hand, squeezing it in comfort.

" _What's the big idea pushing past us?!"_ Natalie asked angrily, brushing non-existing dirt of her shirt to prove a point, " _We were trying to talk to Ash until you rudely pushed us aside!"_ She continued, opening her mouth to continue till Jason placed a hand on her shoulder, making her look at him questionably, " _Natalie...normally I'd be as mad as you, but these guys clearly have something going on right now...I'm sure they didn't eve notice us..."_ Jason reasoned with Natalie, making her tighten her jaw slightly - Since when was Jason the reasonable one?!

A.J and Ritchie looked to each other fro a second before looking at Natalie, " _Your friend is right - Listen, were sorry for barging passed you, we were just worried about are friend and his pokemon"_ Richie apologised, indicating to Ash who continued to stare at the operating room, unknowingly squeezing Maddison's hand back for comfort he didn't know he needed.

Natalie's annoyed look was quickly replaced with that of worry as she looked from Ash to the operating room, " _What happened?"_ She asked, looking back at Richie and A.J - Jason nodding, the same look of worry written on his face. Ritchie nudged A.J, who rolled his eyes at the boy, but nonetheless explained the situation to the two trainers in front of them - if for no other reason they seemed to be acquainted with their friend, and genuinely seemed concerned.

* * *

After being told about what had happened, Jason had to hold Natalie back as she tried to run out of the pokemon center to teach this Misty girl a lesson, " _Natalie no! I know your mad! but Ash needs us!"_ Jason shouted, making Natalie calm down slightly, looking to Jason for a second before looking at Ash who had finally looked away from the red light to the four trainers talking, " _Sorry...I just can't stand people who hurt other pokemon on purpose"_

Ash nodded lightly at her apology, " _Its okay, I understand-"_

 ** _DING_**

The sudden noise cut Ash off, making him look to the operating room: the light had turned off as Nurse Joy walked out, wiping the sweat from the brow with a stern look on her face. Letting go of Maddison's hand, Ash jumped up and ran over to Nurse Joy, looking around her to try and get a peek at Pidgeot, " _Is Pidgeot okay Nurse joy?!"_ Ash asked, surprised when the nurse held her arms up to prevent him looking in, a stern look on her face.

" _Pidgeot is resting right now: she has several bruises, but nothing fatal - However, her chest feathers are badly damaged, and upon further inspection I noticed pieces of ice lodged in her flesh"_ Nurse Joy explained in a stern voice, making the group of now 6 trainers eyes widen, Ash's the widest and filled with worry, " _She will be fine, but won't be able to battle until her chest bandages are removed...As for you young man!"_ She continued, turning to address Ash directly, " _How could you allow your pokemon to fight till she got into such condition? I ought to report you to the police for pokemon abuse for this!"_

Ash's jaw dropped in shock at the nurses scolding, **"Pokemon abuse?!"** He thought, a look of hurt crossing his face, whilst A.J and Ritchie started getting angry at yet ANOTHER accusation being thrown at Ash with no proof, " _Hey! It wasn't his fault! it was-" "Forget it A.J, I'm sorry Nurse Joy, can I please see her?"_ Ash interrupted, clearly more interested in checking on Pidgeot. Nurse Joy looked at the boy suspiciously, but sighed and stepped to the side, allowing the boy to walk I, " _Very well, but make it quick, she needs her sleep"_

 _"Thank you!"_ Ash thanked quickly, running into the room, not noticing Nurse Joy close the door behind him as he stopped to stare at Pidgeot, " _Pidgeot..."_ Ash whispered at the sight of the bird pokemon: she was lying on a large stretcher with wires attatched to her wings and head, she had a large bandage wrapped around her chest and a small one wrapped around the end of her right wing, " _Pidgeot...I-I'm so sorry Pidgeot..."_

* * *

\- **Outside the Operating room -**

 _"So what happened to that poor pokemon?"_ Nurse Joy asked the remaining 5 trainers, making them all blink at the tone of her voice, " _You said it wasn't his fault, then HOW did that Pidgeot get in that condition?"_ she demanded, now looking at A.J, who frowned and crossed him arms, sitting down in the spot that Ash had previously occupied, making Maddison shuffle away a little in shyness.

looking up at Joy who still had a stern look on her face, A.J started to explain what had happened, "... _then Pidgeot started to fall after being hit, but Misty didn't stop! She told Croconaw to attack again, but he refused, then she let Pidgeot sink in the water - if Ash hadn't risked his own life to get her out of the water she would have drowned. When Ash confronted her on letting Pidgeot nearly drown, she said it wasn't her job to save his pokemon"_ A.J finished, his crossed arms now by his sides, his fists balled up into fists as he looked down into his lap, grinding his teeth together in anger.

" _She wanted to keep fighting, but her a girl, her sister I think, stepped in and ended the fight, telling Ash to get Pidgeot to the pokemon center"_ Richie said, moving to A.J's side and putting a hand on his shoulder, frowning himself as Nurse Joy's face changed from stern to that off shock. Maddison, still sat a little bit away from them was now shaking in anger, and despite her normal shyness, suddenly turned her head sharply to Nurse joy and spoke angrily through gritted teeth, " _Then he came here, only for you to accuse him of pokemon abuse"_ The angry sound of her voice made Richie and A.J look at her in surprise - they were only use to hearing her voice in a soft, often meek tone; Pikachu, who had decided to let his best friend go in alone, nodded in agreement with Maddison's words, " _Pi-PikPikachu!"_ he chipped in, shooting Joy an annoyed look whilst moving to sit in Maddison's lap, who gently placed a hand on his head, stroking it gently which seemed to calm the agitated electric mouse

To say Nurse Joy was surprised was an understatement: she couldn't believe that Misty, the pride of Cerulean City would treat a pokemon like that! Noticing the look on Joy's face, Maddison huffed a little and turned her head away, " _If you don't believe us, ask her sister's, they were their when it happened"_ she almost spat at the nurse, clearly still angry at the accusations that she had thrown at Ash: " **Ash is to nice to ever hurt his pokemon!"** She though angrily as she crossed her arm's her anger turning into worry as she though about the boy who had almost become like an older brother to her.

* * *

- **Back with Ash -**

Ash was now sat down in the chair located next to the stretcher: raising a hand to gently stroke her non-damaged wing's feathers, Ash let a few tears run down his face, " _I'm sorry Pidgeot...I-I didn't know she would go so far...I-Its all my fault"_ The boy sobbed softly, ducking his head down in sadness and guilt: " _Huh?"_ Ash spoke softly when he felt Pidgeot lift her wing to wipe away his tears, making him look to her, relief filling his eyes as he sore that hse had opened her eyes, " _Thank god your okay...I'm sorry Pidgeot its my fau-mmhp"_ Ash started to apologise, only for Pidgeot to stop him by pressing her wing to his mouth, shaking her head to tell him that it wasn't his fault.

With a watery smile, Ash wiped the remaining tears from his eyes and gently lowered Pidgeot's wing, stroaking her feathers one more time whilst standing up, " _Thank you, you get some sleep...I'll come by again a little later..."_ As Pidgeot nodded and closed her eyes to rest, Ash walked over to the door, looking back briefly at one of his oldest partners, turning back to the door and walking out with a small smile on his face.

* * *

As Ash walked out the room, he noticed that everyone was sitting around with a worried look - except Nurse joy who seemed to have a look of regret - " _I'm going for a walk, ill be back soon"_ Ash stated, quickly leaving the pokemon center before anyone could say anything. Richie went to follow him but was stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder: looking back he was surprised to see Maddison had stopped him, a sad look on her face, " _Let him go...he has things he needs to think about"_

Richie went to protest, but stopped with a sigh and nodded, sitting back down besides A.J: Maddison smiled weakly and looked down at Pikachu, " _You should go to him Pika..."_ She told the mouse pokemon, calling him by the nickname she had given him, " _He could use his best friend..."_ Pikachu nodded, jumping out of Maddison's lap and chasing after Ash whilst shouting, " _Pikapii!"_

The group went silent for a few minutes, trying to process what had happened that day, but for the last time that day, their attention was drawn to the entrance to the center as the doors swung open, but instead of another trainer, it was a pokemon

" _Croconaw!"_ It was Croconaw! A.J, Ritchie, Jason and Natalie looked at the water pokemon with surprise and a little anger, remembering that he was the one who got Pidgeot in such a bad state, " _What are YOU doing here?!"_ to everyone's surprise, Jason bit out to the pokemon, who blinked at the question. Before Croconaw, or anyone else could say anything, Maddison quickly moved over to Croconaw and stood in front of him in defence, making everyone, including Croconaw, look at her in shock, " _Guys stop! Look, Croconaw has two poke'ball with him, one must be his! And remember! He refused to attack when Misty told him to!"_ Maddison defended the Johto-starter, who shook away its shock and nodded at her words, speaking in a muffled tone with the poke'ball still sitting in his mouth, " _Croc-Croconaw!"_

Ignoring the conflicted looks the others had on their faces, Maddison turned to Croconaw and knelt down to his height, " _If your looking for Ash, he just left with Pikachu, if your quick you might catch up to him"_ With a look of appreciation, Croconaw nodded and ran out the still open doors of the center, hoping to catch up to Ash.

* * *

Ash walked at a brisk pace till he stood on the outskirts of Cerulean City, only stopping when he herd Pikachu shout, " _Pikapii!"_ making him turn slightly to see Pikachu following him. Smiling weakly, Ash waited for Pikachu to jump onto his shoulder before continuing his walk, stopping when he came to a log - sitting down on the log, Ash sighed and looked down sadly, " _Pikapii...Pi-Pikachu?"_ Pikachu asked the crestfallen boy worriedly, patting his cheek with his paw gently.

After a few seconds of silence, Ash's body began to shake lightly: Pikachu looked to his trainer, thinking he was crying but was surprised when he sore anger on his friends face, his teeth were grinding and his fists were curled up: Lifting a fist and turning his body slightly, throwing his hand down and punching the ground whilst whispering in a voice that made a shiver run down Pikachu's spine, " _How dare she hurt Pidgeot like that...How dare she...She will pay for this...I don't know how, but she will..."_

Even though the malic in his partners voice scared him a little Pikachu looked at Ash with sympathy - he knew Ash always suffered when his friends were hurt badly: Just like when Bayleef got hurt! But that time, Ash got angry at himself, this time he was angry at someone else. As ash continued grumbling to himself, Pikachu's ear twitched, making the mouse pokemon jump of Ash's shoulder and sniff the air, quickly getting in a battle stance as Croconaw appeared from the bushes.

 **-Pokemon Talk-**

 _"What are you doing here traitor?!"_ Pikachu hissed at the crocodile pokemon, electricity crackling off his cheeks as the big jawed pokemon looked at him with wide eyes, lifting his short, chubby arms into the air in surrender. Spitting out the two poke'ball's that he had been holding in his mouth, Pikachu raised a brow as the poke'balls rolled over to him.

" _I was looking for Ash...A-and I was worried about the bird I was fighting..."_ Croconaw explained, fear filling his eyes as Pikachu growled, stepping towards him threateningly, his cheeks sparking more from anger, " _Why do you care?! YOU are the one who got Pidgeot in the hospital!"_ Pikachu shouted at the cowering water pokemon, anger written all over his face.

 _"I-I didn't know I would hit her so hard! A-and I wanted to tell Ash about what happened, why I ended up with that girl!"_ Croconaw cried out, falling to the floor and covering his head in fear at Pikachu's anger. Cocking a brow at the fallen pokemon, Pikachu's face stayed angry, but started to change into wonder, " _What's their to say? You abandoned him!"_

 _"That's not true! I didn't do it by choice!"_ The water pokemon cried, lifting his head to show Pikachu the tears now falling down his face, making the electric mouse step back in surprise at the honesty and pain in his face, " _I-I wanted to go with Ash, I really did! B-but some of the bigger, stronger pokemon like Torterror and Staraptor threatened me, saying they would kill me if I didn't leave Ash! I got scared! I-I didn't know what to do, I-I'm sorry!"_ He cried, sitting up slightly and rubbing his nose as he explained, " _It wasn't just me who got pressured into ditching Ash...the other sphere thing, K-kingler is inside it: He didn't want to leave Ash either, but he was stronger than me, he fought with Torterror and Staraptor, but they beat him up so badly, they almost killed him! They only stopped when he agreed to leave Ash"_

Pikachu stood up straight, a look of bewilderment crossing his face as he searched Croconaw's face for any hint that he was lying; when he couldn't find any, he looked to the poke'ball's in fornt of him before looking at Ash then Croconaw, " _Somehow, your going to have to explain that to Ash, he might forgive you, but I wouldn't get your hopes up"_

* * *

Ash, who had been repeatedly punching the ground - to the point his knuckles were starting to bruise and bleed slightly, he only stopped when he felt a tug on his jacket. Looking down at Pikachu who pointed to the side, Ash followed the direction he was pointing,

In an instant Ash's eyes hardened, his jaw locked and his body went stiff, " _What the HELL are you doing here?!"_


	14. Ash's Breakdown

_"Ash! Ash, where are you?"_ A.J shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth to make his shout louder, frowning in worry when he didn't get a reply: He knew Maddison had told Richie to let him go, but she din't tell him - plus he knew Ash needed someone to talk to, he remembered being in a similar situation when his Sandlash got badly hurt.

Continuing down the dirt path, A.J looked around with his eye brows furyed in worry, " _Where could he be...?"_ He woundered outloud, scratching the back of his head as he walked, " _Pi-Pi-PikPikachu!"_ A.J blinked at the sound, turning around to see Pikachu running up to him, " _Pikachu! have you seen Ash?"_ He asked the yellow mouse, who nodded and started running towards where Ash was, A.J following closely behind.

" _What are you doing here?"_ Ash demanded once more as he looked at Croconaw, his eyes going from angry to ice cold, " _C-C-Croc...c-Croconaw..."_ The water type whispered, recoiling in shock and fear at the icy look Ash was giving him, backing up against a tree in fear: " _Pikapii!"_ Ash and Croconaw's encounter was interrupted when Pikachu came running towards them, neither of them having noticed the electric pokemon left at all. Close behind Pikachu, Ash noticed A.J following him, making Ash frown a little, _"A.J? what are you doing here? I told you I was going for a walk"_

 _"I know you said that, but I know what your going through. Once, Sandslash got hurt really bad, just like Pidgeot, I was so angry, but then Richie found me and calmed me down by listening to me vent...plus I knew that this here Croconaw was following you, and I have a way you can understand what he is trying to tell you"_ A.J explained, unclipping a poke'ball off his belt whilst Ash, Pikachu and Croconaw looked at A.J in disbelief.

Throwing the poke'ball into the air, The small group watched as the pokemon appeared from within the poke'ball, " _Alakazam!"_ The psychic pokemon announced as it's form fully appeared, looking around and walking over to A.J, " _This is Alakazam, as you know, most psychic types can use telepathy - well Alakazam can! So, Croconaw can explain itself to him and then he can tell us what he is saying!"_ A.J concluded, smiling as Ash raised an eyebrow at his words, a small scowl on his face.

 _"Somehow I don't think anything that he says will make me any less angry, but go for it"_ Ash grumbled, watching as Alakazam and Croconaw started talking. After a few minutes, Alakazam nodded and turned to A.J and Ash: suddenly a deep and calm voice entered both the boys minds, " _This Croconaw tells me that during an incident last year, he and another pokemon named Kingler were threatened and forced into siding with them - he also claims that the pokemon named Kingler was beaten near death until he agreed to side with them"_

Blinking in surprise at what Alakazam told them, A.J face turn to anger, whilst Ash's face turned to that of suspicion, looking to Croconaw with untrusting eyes, " _Is that true?"_ He asked the water-type, who nodded sadly, looking down in sadness and guilt, " _Why should I believe you? Alakazam, can you tell if he is telling the truth or not?"_ Ash request Alakazam, turning his focus to the intelligent pokemon, who nodded, closing his eyes and focusing his mind to look at Croconaw's emotions.

Opening his eyes, Alakazam nodded and looked back to Ash, " _I sense nothing from this pokemon but honest and guilt, no signs of malice or ill-intentions"_ He concluded, watching as Ash turned his attention back to Croconaw, a torn look on his face, " _I don't know if I can forgive you Croconaw, what you did really hurt me, and to see you with her of all people..."_

Croconaw's eyes filled with tears as he quickly started shouting desperately, " _Naw-Naw! CrocCroc-Croconaw!"_ raising a brow, Ash looked at Alakazam who quickly translated the desperate pleas, " _He says he didn't want to go with the girl, she forced him to go with her - Kingler only went with her because he wanted to protect him, the whole year him and the other pokemon were always trying to escape, but stopped when Misty threatened them if they left and didn't listen to her in battle"_

Slightly shocked at the claims, Ash quickly believed the water-types last words, " _I can imagine this new, horrible Misty doing something like that...I guess o can understand why you did what you did...but now what? you've escaped the she-devil and you've explained yourself to me..."_ Ash questioned, wondering if the pokemon in front of him wanted to join him, as well as if Kingler also wanted to join him, " _Where you hoping to join me again or something?"_

With a blush growing on his cheeks, Croconaw nodded shyly whilst looking down, blinking when Ash sighed and picked up the two poke'balls of the floor and looked at them for a full minute, completely silent, " _I may end up regretting this, but I do believe in second chances, so I will give you another chance..."_ The words Ash spoke made Pikachu, A.J and Alakazam all smile, whilst Croconaw stared at Ash, jumping up trying to hug the boy, making Ash step back and the pokemon fall to his feet. Looking back at Ash with a hurt look, Ash sighed and stood up, " _I said I will give you another chance, but you AND kingler will have to work to gain my trust, okay? hugging is reserved for pokemon and people I trust"_ Ash explained, trying to ignore the sad and hurt look of Croconaw's face by enlarging his poke'ball an pointing it at him, " _Me, you and Kingler will talk later, for now return"_

Looking down at the poke'ball after Croconaw had returned, Ash placed them inside of his bag before sitting back down on the log with a sigh, running a hand threw his whilst holding his hat in the other, " _This has been one hell of a day..."_ Ash grumbled to himself, setting his hat back on his head. Turning to look at A.J, who had started chuckling at his words, Ash watched his friend call back Alakazam before sitting on the log next to Ash, " _It sure has been one hell of a day...you want to talk about it?"_

Looking at A.J for a second before looking down at the floor, his arms hanging over his knees as he clenched his fists, ignoring the pain he felt as a result of punching the ground earlier, " _I just don't understand it all A.J...I don't understand any of it all! Why would she hurt Pidgeot so much? Why?"_ Ash started to rant, his voice starting to rise in volume, " _Actually, you know what I want to know? I want to know why she betrayed me! why they ALL betrayed me!"_

* * *

 _"I did everything for them! Just look at everyone who left me! Look how much I did for them! If it wasn't for me, Brock would never have been able to explore the world and learn more about becoming a pokemon breeder, he wouldn't have caught all those pokemon of his if I hadn't let him travel with me! And how does he repay me for all the stuff I exposed him to? He ditches me, even takes some of my pokemon away from me!"_ Ash continued, his rant so loud that the area they were in was now silent - except for Ash's ranting.

 _"Then Misty, I don't why I ever though of her as a friend! every chance she got she put me down! The first time we met she slapped me - she pulled me out of a river and slapped me! I get that she was worried about Pikachu, but I was a kid, I was 10 and nearly drowned but she didn't care in the slightest! Sure, she pointed out which way the pokemon center, but she knows I only took the bike because Pikachu NEEDED to get to the hospital! she knew that! But still, for the next 2 years she followed me everywhere! Through Kanto, Johto and the Orange Islands! I put up with all her insults, even bought her a new bike and helped her reconnect with her sisters, who ended up making Misty the gym leader, not once did I get a thank you!"_ Ash's voice was thick with anger as he ranted about the hot-headed girl, " _Then she calls me a loser, steals some pokemon as well, then nearly kills Pidgeot!"_

Taking a deep breath, Ash pinched the bridge of his nose as he continued to rant, A.J just sat their and let him get all his feelings out, " _Then there's Tracy, we met him in the Orange Islands, he was a sketcher, a dam good one, - even if I hate to admit it. His idol was Professor Oak, so I introduced them, and I got him the position of lab assistant! if I hadn't been their he may never have ,et the Professor!_ Shaking his head in disbelief, Ash growled and kicked a tree, watching as a few Pidgy flew from the tree, " _Then there's May, Max and Dawn! In Hoenn I taught May everything about being a trainer, encouraged her to get into Contests and always gave her advice and was their for her when her rivals would tear her down! As for Max, he was May's little brother, if I hadn't given the okay, he wouldn't have travelled with us at all! Dawn was like May, a new trainer who loved contests! I met her in Sinnoh. Just like with May, I taught her everything, giving her tips for her Contests that I remembered from travling with May!"_

 _"Then in Unova I met Cilan and Iris - I don't even remember HOW Iris and me started travelling together, every time I did anything wrong, ANYTHING, even if it wasn't my fault, she call me a kid, even though I was older and more experience then her! As for Cilan, he was a different guy, we weren't the closest of friend's, but it still hurt when he turned his back on me!"_ Ash growled out stamping his foot on the floor in anger as his fingernails dug into his palms.

 _"But the last two to leave me hurt the most...Gary, he was my oldest friend and rival, sure we didn't always get along, but I respected him, and I though he respected me! Guess I was wrong! Then there's her...my m-mom..."_ Ash continued, his voice starting to crack as tears are anger starting spilling over his cheeks, turning around with so much pain, betrayal and ange rin his face that it made A.J's heart break at the usually strong-willed boy, " _She agreed with them! She didn't believe in me anymore! She just kept saying that maybe it was for the best if I gave up! Do you know what that's like A.J? To be betrayed and abandoned by EVERYONE you ever really gave a dam about?! To have your own mother basically say that you aren't good enough to accomplish your dreams?! BECAUSE IT'S THE WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD!"_

With those last words, Ash's knees finally gave way, making the boy fall to the ground in a sobbing heap, his body shaking violently as his cries of pain echoed through the clearing. Pikachu, who had started crying during his best friends rant, ran to Ash and hugged his head, " _Pikapii! Pika-pipi-Pikachu!"_ Pikachu cried, sharing in his trainers pain.

A.J watched Ash and Pikachu cry, holding back his own tears A.J stood up from the log and kneeled down to Ash, helping the boy sit up, " _I-I'm so sorry Ash...I'm sorry you went through hell and back, I can't imagine the pain you must have felt, or that your feeling now, but there is something you have to remember,"_ Ash hiccupped softly, looking up at A.J like a small child, making the green-haired boys heart ach for him, " _They may have left you, but you still have me and Ritchie, you have Maddison, Jason and Natalie...You have Pikachu, Charizard, all of your pokemon...were your family now, and we will never leave you behind"_

A.J words hit Ash hard, forcing more tears down his face as he threw his arms around the slightly taller boy, his body shaking as he sobbed into A.J's shirt, who looked alarmed at first but hugged the boy back - At the same time, Pikachu jumped to Ash's shoulder and continued hugging the broken boy:

" _Please...Please don't leave me"_


	15. A Change In Attitude

After crying into A.J's shirt for a few minutes, Ash's sobs had quietened down to just small hiccups and sniffles: A.J's shirt was soaked from Ash's tears but he didn't care - his friend needed him, and he would be dammed if he wouldn't be a shoulder for his broken friend to cry on. Slowly Ash pulled away, moving his hands to rub his face, shakily talking to A.J, " _S-Sorry about that A.J...I-I don't know what came over me..."_ His voice was slightly cracking and tired, showing how mentally exhausted the raven-haired boy truly was.

With a smile, A.J patted him on the shoulder, " _Don't worry about it pal, that's what friends are for, and don't worry, ill keep this between us okay?"_ He reassured the boy in front of him, who nodded before yawning loudly, rubbing his eyes tiredly, making A.J laugh slightly, " _Come on bud, lets get back to the center, its getting late anyway..."_ Ash just nodded silently, moving Pikachu, who had fallen asleep on the boys shoulder, to his arms before following A.J back to the pokemon center.

As soon as the two boys re-entered the center, Richie and Maddison jumped up to their feet and ran over to them, "Thank god you guys are back! We were really worried" Richie exclaimed, standing in front of the two, blinking when he noticed A.J's arm around Ash, helping him walk, "You alright their Ash?" A.J held his finger up to his lips in a shushing manner, lifting Ash's hat gently to show that the boy's eyes were closed - he had fallen asleep halfway home, so A.J helped the boy get home.

Richie blinked but smiled, grabbing Ash's other arm and helping A.J move the sleeping boy and the Pikachu still nestled in his arms to the couch, lying him down and placing his hat and bag on the small table next to him, "He won' want to be far from Pidgeot, so lets let me sleep here...I booked us a room already" Richie said softly, standing up and pulling out a two keys, handing one to Maddison who looked at the key and nodded, following the two boys as they all headed to their rooms.

* * *

- **Sometime Later That night -**

Ash slowly blinked his eyes open, yawning and rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he sat up - moving to a sitting position whilst making sure not to wake Pikachu, Ash looked around the quiet center room, the only source of light coming from the window of the Operation room, and the small red light on the front of the desk. Blinking for a few seconds, Ash smiled a little, remembering how he had fallen asleep on the way back to the center, " **A.J must have helped me back..."** Ash thought as he quietly stood up and stretched, walking over to the front desk, shooting a slightly tired looking nurse Joy a smile, " _Evening Nurse Joy...Is their anywhere I can get a drink of water?"_ Ash asked politely, seeming to have forgotten about her accusations from the day before.

Blinking slightly as Ash asked her the question, Nurse Joy stood up straight and smiled at him, a hint of guilt panging in her heart as she looked at the drained boy in front of her, " _Of course, by the Operation room, there's a water fountain..."_ She told the boy who smiled and thank her, turning to walk to the cooler, " _Wait...I-I just wanted to apologise for what I said yesterday...It was wrong of me to accuse you of abuse with no evidence, and before you could explain what happened..."_ Joy apologised, taking her traditional hat off as she apologised.

Ash blinked at her words, but smiled at the apologetic Nurse, " _Its okay Nurse Joy, you were just worried about Pidgeot's safety, after seeing the damages she had, its no wonder you jumped to that conclusion..."_ He reassured the Nurse, who stared at Ash in wonder as he accepted her apology - Ash politely excused himself and made his way over to the water fountain, turning it out and gulping down the water thirstily.

Taking a deep breath after chugging down the refreshing water, Ash turned the machine off and walked to the window looking into the Operating room and looked at Pidgeot: She was sleeping peacefully, her bandaged chest slowly rising and falling with each breath, making Ash smile, " _She's already looking a lot better, she should be alright to leave by tomorrow..."_ Ash jumped a little at the sound of Nurse Joy's voice, turning to look at the pink haired woman who had made her way over to Ash, " _She's a very healthy Pidgeot, one of the healthiest pokemon I've ever seen...you raised her well,"_ Joy complimented, making Ash smile and nod in thanks, placing a hand on the window as he stared into the room, " _Thank you Nurse Joy that means a lot...I'm glad to here that's shes doing good...I don't think i'll have her battle for a little bit, not until her chest and wing are fully healed"_

As Ash told his plans to the nurse, she smiled - this boy really cared about his pokemon, enough to not force one to fight whilst still injured, it gave Joy a warm feeling in her stomach to see a trainer have so much love for his pokemon, " _Its still late my boy, you get some more sleep, I'll keep a close on Pidgeot, don't you worry"_ Nurse Joy reassured the boy, watching as he yawn, showing that he was still tired.

Ash nodded gently, walking back over to the couch and lying down, smiling when Pikachu cuddled into him. Closing his eyes, Ash quickly fell asleep as Nurse Joy walked back over to the desk, making a mental note to contact T="The sensational sisters" in the morning and find out what really happened at the gym.

* * *

 **\- The Next Morning -**

Ash blinked his eyes open slowly when he felt someone shaking his shoulder gently and calling his name, " _Ash? Ash?"_ Finally opening his eyes, Ash recognised the face in front of him as well as the voice, " _Morning Maddison...what's up?"_ He yawned, sitting up and stretching his arms as Maddison stepped back and sat down on the couch across from him, " _Not a lot really, just thought I would wake you up before the room filled with people...I-I know you don't like lots of people..."_ She explained gently, making Ash nod in thanks, " _Thanks Maddison, that's nice of you to do that for me..."_

Maddison blushed shyly at the compliment, ducking her head slightly but nodded with her small smile still on her face, " _No worries"_ Ash smiled and looked around the room, looking down at Pikachu with a slightly smile, " _Can you watch Pikachu, I need to talk to Nurse joy?"_ When Maddison nodded and sat down next to the still sleeping pokemon, Ash picked his hat up and placed it on his head, walking over the front desk and looking up at Nurse Joy: who smiled at Ash when she noticed him walking over to her, " _Good morning, I trust you slept well?"_ Nurse Joy asked cheerfully, making Ash nod in response, stretching his arms once more, " _I most certainly did, thank you Nurse Joy, I was wondering if I could see Pidgeot?"_

Maddison, who was still sat next to Pikachu, blinked at the sudden change in Ash's behaviour: " **I wonder what happened...he's being so polite, and talking to other people so much better..."** She though curiously, watching as Nurse Joy nodded, walking with Ash over to the Operating room door.

Ash smiled as Nurse Joy opened the door and let him in, stepping inside - a giant smile spreading across his face when he sore Pidgeot: who was now standing up, stretching her wings, _"Hey Pidgeot, its great to see you standing, you must be feeling better?"_ Ash asked as he walked over to her, Nurse Joy stanying and watching he two from the door.

 _"Pidgeot!"_ Pidgeot confirmed, smiling as Ash walked over to her and began stroking her wings, " _I'm so glad, Nurse Joy said you would be able to leave today - but I don't want you to battle for a while"_ Ash explained, holding up his hands in defence when Pidgeot looked at Ash with an upset face and went to disagree, " _It won't be for a long time, I just want your wing and chest to recover fully before you battle again okay? I was really scared when you got hurt - so I don't want you to push yourself alright?"_ Ash reasoned with the large bird pokemon, who grumbled but nodded reluctantly - She was still upset she wouldn't be battling, but she knew Ash was just looking out for her.

" _I'm glad that you have recovered so well Pidgeot, young man, here is your pokemon's poke'ball,"_ Ash turned to look at Nurse Joy as she walked into the room, handing Ash Pidgeot's poke'ball with a smile: Ash took the poke'ball and turned to Pidgeot, " _Alright girl, i'm going to return you for a little while so you can recover some more, "I'll let you out later and check your bandages okay?"_ Pidgeot nodded, cawing softly as Ash held her poke'ball up, returning her to the comfort of her poke'ball.

Looking at the poke'ball with a small smile, Ash though briefly for a second whilst clipping the poke'ball back onto his belt before turning to Nurse Joy, " _Now that I'm thinking about it, Nurse Joy? Do you think you could show me how to check and change bandages? I've got a rough idea of how to check, but I don't want to leave anything to chance with any of my friends"_ Jot blinked in surprised, but smiled - a small sense of pride bubbling in her chest as the young boy in front of her made the request, " **He really cares"** She though to herself, nodding towards Ash, " _Of course I can show you, the first thing you have to do..."_

Ash pulled out a small pad of paper from his back pocket alongside a pen, quickly writing down everything Nurse Joy told him.

* * *

 **\- 10:20 That Morning -**

Ash was sat talking to Maddison, Pikachu - who had woken up not to long after Ash - sat next to him conversing with Nagini, who Maddison had sent out when Ash was in the operation room, " _So you were wondering if I could get Sceptile to help Nagini to work on some techniques? I'll ask him later if he is up for it, if not I could get Bayleef to help out..."_ Ash replied to the Maddison, making her blink at the mention of the other grass type, " **I wonder what other pokemon he has with him..."** She thought, opening her mouth to ask him what other pokemon he has.

 _"Morning"_ The two heard from behind them, turning to see Richie walking towards them, Sparky sat on his shoulder and stretching his arms, " _Morning Richie, Where's A.J and the others?"_ Ash asked, looking behind the brown hair boy in curiosity, " _A.J went out back with the other two - the girl, Natalie? She challenged him to a battle so their about to have a battle - You guys want to come and watch?"_ The boy explained, indicating to the glass doors located to the side of the building, where you could see A.J, Natalie and Jason all walking towards the backyard battle field.

Both Ash and Maddison stood up and nodded, " _Sure lets go, I am curious to what pokemon they both have..."_ Ash confirmed, following Richie outside: Maddison trailing behind with Pikachu and Nagini, who had stopped talking to follow their trainers.

* * *

 _"So how many pokemon do you want to use?"_ Ash heard A.J ask Natalie as he and the others sat on the bench located next to the battle field - Pikachu now placed securely on his shoulder, " _How about a double battle?"_ Natalie suggested, unclipping two poke'balls of her belt and presenting them to A.J - who nodded and moved his black belt to reveal his own poke'balls.

 _"Wait..."_ A.J stopped and looked towards Jason, who was looking at him in confusion, " _How do you have more than 6 pokemon with you? I though after you caught 6, they got sent to the lab..."_ The blond haired boy asked, making A.J smile as he unclipped his own two poke'balls, " _Usually they do, but I didn't start my journey with a starter and a pokedex, I met my starter and my journey went from their: since I don't have a pokedex, my poke'balls don't have anywhere to go, so they stay with me instead"_ He explained, making Jason nod slowly in understanding before turning to Richie and Ash with the same confused face.

 _"What about you guys? I've seen you both with pokedex's, so their is a lab for your pokemon to go to, but their all with you..."_ He asked the two, who looked at each other for a few seconds before Richie explained his own story, " _Your right their, I do have a pokedex, I have the professor's permission to carry all my pokemon with me - sometimes if you ask them and they trust you enough, they will let you carry more than the normal 6"_

 _"Same here, professor Oak allowed me to take all my pokemon with me - he knows I like to have all my friends close"_ Ash chipped in shortly, not wanting to go into to much detail about his reasons - being that he didn't fully trust Jason or Natalie yet, he didn't want them to know everything about his past just yet. Jason nodded in understanding, making a mental note to talk to his own professor later on to see if he could do the same thing.

Turning their attention back to the battlefield, the three trainers watched as Natalie threw her poke'balls in the air with a shout of, " _To the field!"_ watching closely, Ash scanned his eyes over the two pokemon that appeared in front of Natalie: " _Weavile!" "Walrein!"_ \- _"Hmm...good choices, they work well together..."_ Ash commented, making Maddison blink in confusion at his words, but stayed quiet, deciding to see how the battle went herself.

A.J nodded at the choice of pokemon, throwing his own poke'balls into the air to reveal his own pokemon - His Beedrll and Butterfree. Jason snapped his attention back to the field and raised his arm's " _This will be a double battle between A.J and Natalie! Go!"_ he finished, stepping back and balling his fists up, his excitement for battles returning as the battle began.

 _"U_ _se_ **Ice Beam,** _aim for Beedrill's wings!"_ Natalie called quickly, smiling as Walrein shoot a ball of ice into the air - which seemingly exploded, falling down in small but sharp chunks of hail, " _Walrein use_ **Ice Ball** _on Butterfree! Aim for the wings as well!"_ She continued, watching as Weavile shot a stream of ice towards the buzzing wings of Beedrill whilst Walrein summoned a small ball of ice from its mouth, shooting it towards Butterfree.

 _"Both of you dodge"_ A.J ordered, watching as his two bug pokemon dodged the attacks with impressive speed, _"Beedrill use_ **Agility** _then use_ **Twin-needle** _on Weavile, Butterfree, use_ **Stun Spore** _on Walrein"_ the boy shouted, standing in his own battle stance with fire in his eyes and a smile on his face. Beedrill disappeared and reappeared dozens of times around Weavile, making the Ice/Dark pokemon turn its head in an effort to keep its eyes on the speeding pokemon; whose two stingers glowed white, shooting thin spiked at the weasel pokemon - who reached up to cover its face as the attack hit it directly.

 _"Weavile! Stay strong, use_ **Night Slash!** _Walrein, try and evade the spores!"_ Natalie called, watching as Butterfree's wings shook, yellow spores flowing from them and heading straight towards Walrein. Weavile grunted as the super effective bug type attack hit, but quickly jumped up, its clawed hands surrounded by black energy as it slashed at Beedrill, whilst Walrein tried to move away from the stunning spores.

" _Use_ **Agility** _to dodge Beedrill! Butterfree! Follow Walrein, don't let it get away!"_ A.J ordered, watching as Beedrill starting disappearing and reappearing around Weavile once again whilst Butterfree quickly flew after Walrein who had started to evade the spores, _"Close your eyes and focus Weavile! Predict where Beedrill will appear next then strike! Walrein, try and use_ **Body Slam** _to knock Butterfree out the air before the_ **Stun Spore** _hits!"_

Weavile closed its eyes, focusing its attention to the movement of Beedrill: suddenly Weavile opened its eyes, jumping and swung its **Night Slash** to its left, where Beedrill had just appeared, sending the pokemon flying backwards, skidding across the battlefield, " _Beedrill! Are you okay?"_ A.J asked the fallen but pokemon, who slowly pushed itself up, nodding towards A.J before flying back into the air, flinching from a bruise that was starting to form on its left stinger - Looking over to Walrein, the large seal pokemon had jumped into the air and was barraling towards Butterfree, " _Aim your_ **Stun Spore** _upwards Butterfree then dodge!"_

Butterfree reacted quickly, moving its wings to point upwards, sending the spores towards the falling water/ice pokemon, who cried out in surprise as the paralyzing spores hit its body: without blinking, Butterfree quickly moved out the way, but cried out when Walreins **Body Slam** grazed one of its wings, but quickly flew to float besides Beedrill.

Walrein hit the ground, sending a little dust into the air, " _Walrein!"_ Natalie cried out in worry, watching as the dust cleared to see Walrein with electricity sparking of its body signalling its paralysis, " _Use_ **Rest!"** Natalie called out, making Ash curse slightly under his breath, " _Quick Butterfree, use_ **Energy Ball,** _Beedrill, use_ **Poison Jab** _on Weavile!"_ A.J quickly commanded - closing its eyes and beginning to fall asleep, Walrein lowered its head as its body began to recover - Butterfree started to form a green orb around its mouth quickly shooting it at the resting pokemon, causing a small explosion upon impact.

Beedrill zoomed at Weavile, its non-damaged spear surrounded with purple toxins: jabbing forwards and hitting Weavile before Natalie could call out for it to dodge: _"Weavile!"_ the pokemon cried as it got pushed back from the force of the attack, its hands once again held up to protect its face, " _No, Weavile! Walrein!"_ Natalie shouted, watching in horror as her two pokemon took the attacks. As the smoke cleared around Walrein, it was revealed that the pokemon was still lying down, but had swirls in its eyes as it cried its name, " _Walrein..."_ whilst Weavile still stood strong, but lowered its arms to reveal a purple tint across its face: Poison!

Calling back Walrein, Natalie thanked the dual typed pokemon before focusing her attention back to the field, " _I know you can do this Weavi-! "Stop!"_ Ash shouted, making the group turn to look at him in curiosity as he reached inside his bag to reveal a Pecha berry, throwing it towards Natalie who caught it, " _Give that to Weavile before you continue, otherwise it will end up in critical condition"_ Ash simply stated, indicating to Weavile who was swaying on its feat, slightly delirious from the effects of poison.

Natalie blinked but nodded, running to the field and catching Weavile as it swayed, helping the poisoned pokemon eat the berry: Slowly chewing on the berry and swallowing it, the purple tint faded from Weavile's face as it cried its name out and stood up once more, " _Weavile!"_ A.J and Natalie smiled as the pokemon stood strong, clearly cured from poison, " _Good call Ash, I want to win, but I don't want to hurt Weavile"_ A.J commented, nodding towards Ash, understand why Ash did what he did but not minding.

Jason watched the exchange silently, a look of guilt crossing his face as he looked to Ash, " _Ash...about last time with bay-" "Not now, We can talk later"_ Ash quickly interrupted, his attention focused on the field. Jason nodded and looked back to the field, the look of guilt still on his face - Maddison looked between Ash and Jason with confusion and curiosity, " **I wonder what happened..."**

 _"Ready to keep going Natalie?"_ At the sound of A.J's voice, Maddison turned her attention back to the field, watching as Natalie stood up and walked back over to her side, turning with a small glint in her eyes, " _Of course! Lets go Weavile, use_ **Ice Shard!"** Weavile quickly followed orders, jumping and opening its mouth, shooting thousands of shards towards the two flying pokemon.

 _"Butterfree, use_ **Psychic** _to stop the shards, Beedrill, evade as best as you can!"_ A.J called out - Butterfree's eyes shone a soft pink colour, the same colour surrounding the shards heading towards it and falling to the ground with small crunches as they broke apart. Beedrill evaded around the shards, but cried out and fell down when some lose shards hit its wings, sending it to the ground, " _Beedrill!"_ A.J shouted, running to the field and jumping, catching Beedrill before it hit the ground, landing on his backside with a grunt.

 _"Beedrill, are you okay?"_ A.J asked the pokemon, flinching a little from the pain of hitting the ground with the extra weight: Beedrill raised its bruised stinger and buzzed lightly at A.J, a tired look in the bugs eyes,. A.J smiled and lifted the tired bug types poke'ball up and returned it, _"You were great out that Beedrill, you take a rest"_

 _"A.J, you alright?"_ Natalie asked in concern as the green-haired boy stood up with a flinch, somewhat limping back over to his side of the field, " _I'm okay, just glad Beedrill is okay"_ A.J reassured her, looking up at Butterfree, who was now panting in tiredness, before looking to Weavile who was showing very little signs of fatigue, " _I forfeit"_ His words made Natalie, Jason, Maddison and Richie gasp in surprise, whilst Ash nodded his head in respect at the boys decision.

Noticing their looks, A.J walked till he stood under Butterfree and clicked his teeth, making Butterfree float down and land in its trainers arms, " _Butterfree is exhausted, if I keep pushing her to battle she'll get hurt"_ A.J explained, returning the panting pokemon as the group nodded, " _Makes sense"_ Richie commented, nodding his head as he watched the exchange.

Natalie smiled and nodded in understanding, returning Weavile after thanking it for a great battle, " _Your Beedrill and Butterfree and very strong for bug pokemon"_ Natalie complimented as she walked to A.J offering him her hand, which he took and gave her a respectful shake, " _Thank you, your pokemon were very strong as well, but don't underestimate bug pokemon, they are full of surprises"_

Ash, Maddison, Richie and Jason walked over to the trainers with smiles on their faces, " _Wow A.J, Butterfree and Beedrill have really grown stronger"_ Richie complimented, earning a nod from A.J before he looked at Natalie, " _Your pokemon were impressive as well, you trained them well"_ Richie told the girl, who smiled and thanked the brown-haired boy, _"So what are you guy going to do next?"_ Jason interrupted, looking from Maddison to A.J and Richie and finally to Ash who looked to the sky with a determend looke in his eye:

 _"Were going to Hoenn"_


	16. A Slight Detour

Ash looked down at the small town that lay before him, " _Pallet Town...Never though we would be back here, right buddy?"_ Ash spoke to his partner on his shoulder, who nodded with a soft, " _Pika". "Hey Ash, I thought you said we were going to Hoenn?"_ Ash turned his head to the sound of the voice, looking behind him to see his travelling companions: Richie, Maddison, A.J, and the two newest additions - Jason and Natalie.

 _"We are, I just need to make a quick stop here, I need to talk to Professor Oak about something important"_ Ash replied, the 5 trainers nodding in understanding: Ash looked back down at the town and stared for a few seconds, only turning to look back at the other's when a thought came to him, " _If you don't mind guys, I'd like to go by myself, not that I don't trust you guys, I just feel like I need to do this alone"_ Ash request from the group, hoping they would understand.

Jason and Maddison went to complain, but were stopped when Natalie spoke up, " _Of course Ash - obviously whatever you need to talk to him about is important, we can just wait for you"_ Ash nodded in thanks, shooting the older girl a small smile before looking at Pikachu, " _Ready buddy?"_ He asked the yellow mouse, who gave Ash a thumbs up before Ash jumped down and started walking towards the place he once called home.

* * *

- **In Pallet Town -**

Ash walked down the dirt path leading through Pallet Town, his eyes trained forwards and focused on the laboratory that sat on the edge of the town: Ash knew If he started looking around Pallet Town, then all the old memories, good and bad would come flooding back - which would make the raven-haired boy lose control of his emotion and prevent him from going to see Professor Oak.

As Ash passed by his old house, his walking sped up, wanting to avoid the building all together: stopping to look up at the lab in front of him Ash smiled at the familiar looking building - the yellow paint was starting to peel a little after being on the building for so long, the red roof looked the same, as well as Oak's iconic windmill. Ash slowly began acceding the stairs, him and Pikachu starring at the front door of the building as they grew closer and closer to it.

Stopping in front of the door, Ash took a deep breath to calm himself - He knew Oak still believed in him but he was still nervous to see his old professor. Stealing his courage, Ash knocked on the door, a small bead of sweat rolling down his cheek as heard Oak's voice shout, " _Just a second!"_ followed by the sound of stumbling, a chair falling down and papers flying.

Ash swallowed as the door opened to reveal none-other than Professor Oak: over the years the elderly professor still managed to keep a younger look, but his wrinkles where becoming more noticeable, his hair starting to turn a darker shade of grey, " _Hello, how can I help you young man?"_ Oak asked politely, not recognising the boy in front of him. Ash smiled and chuckled slightly, making Oak's brow crease in confusion before Ash lifted his head, revealing his fire filled eyes, " _Don't you recognise me Professor?"_

Professor Oak, upon looking into the fiery eyes of the boy in front of him, and noticing the Pikachu sat on his shoulder, " _A-Ash?"_ He stuttered out in disbelief, making Ash smirk a little and nod, " _That's me, its good to see you professor O-Urmph!"_ Ash exclaimed as the elderly Professor pulled Ash in for a hug: Hesitantly, Ash moved his arms around the man's neck hugging him back with a small smile, tears gathering in his eyes, " _I missed you Professor..."_

Leaning back and raising a hand to wipe the tears that had gathered in his own eyes, Oak held Ash's shoulder and smiled at the 15-year-old boy, " _Its been a long time Ash, please come in"_ Oak offered the boy, stepping to the side to allow Ash to enter, " _Thanks Professor"_ Ash replied, walking inside the building - a smile creeping onto his face when Pikachu jumped form his shoulder on to the Professor's with a happy, " _PikaPika-Pikachu!"_

 _"Its good to see you as well Pikachu"_ Oak told the mouse pokemon, raising a hand to pat the side of his head, earning a happy, " _Chaa",_ Oak walked ahead as Pikachu jumped back to Ash's shoulder, said boy following the man as he walked his research/living room, " _Still as busy as ever I see"_ Ash commented, referring to the large stacks of research papers next to his computer, as well as the pieces of paper's and maps scattered around the room. Oak chuckle sheepishly and nodded, " _Always busy my boy,"_ He replied, reaching over to his tea set and pouring out two cups before offering one to Ash, who took it with a grateful smile.

 _"Now my boy,"_ Oak started, taking a sip from his cup before placing it on the small table in front of him, " _Not that it isn't good to see you, quiet the opposite in fact, I'm thrilled to see you again! But I am curious as to what brings you here?"_ Oak continued, waiting and watching Ash as he placed his own cup down on the table, " _Straight to the point as always, but I do have a few things I need to discus with you, some very important things"_

* * *

Professor Oak sat back in shock at what the boy in front of him had just told him: running a hand through his grey hair, Oak took a deep breath before looking back at Ash who held a straight face, " _Let me just go over what you have just informed me, just so I can confirm what you are telling me,"_ Oak said, making Ash nod and look to the Professor patiently, " _To start things off, for the past year you have been hiding deep within the caves of mount silver, and during this time you have been training relentlessly whilst at the same time acquiring some new pokemon, that's correct right?"_ Ash nodded at the professors question, waiting for the man in front of him to continue.

 _"Now, as soon as you left your *home* you went to Pewter City to challenge Brock to prove to him that you were strong, correct? You guys battled and you won using a strategy you had picked up during the year a way, but you say Brock accused you of cheating, then went on to attack you before completely abandoning his own pokemon because said pokemon protected you?"_ Oak continued, looking to Ash in hopes that he was joking - whilst the pokemon researcher didn't care much for Brock, or any of Ash's old friends any more, he still respected them as people who cared for pokemon.

Ash nodded, anger filling his eyes as he gripped Steelix's poke'ball in his hand, showing it the professor, " _This is the pokemon that Brock threw away, I wanted to bring him to you so we could figure out what to do with him"_ Ash explained, placing the poke'ball on the table as Oak nodded before looking back at him, " _We can discuss that later, for now I need to go over the other piece of information you told me"_

 _"After leaving Pewter City, you went to Cerulean City and challenged Misty - The battle started off normal, but it all changed when your Pidgeot got badly hurt, almost drowning, but Misty ordered her pokemon to attack again, whilst also refusing to help save Pidgeot? And just before that she claimed that Brock had accused you off stealing his pokemon?"_ Oak concluded, watching as Ash's face changed from anger to sadness at the mention of Pidgeot getting hurt.

Leaning back in the chair with his hands on his knees, Oak took a deep breath before looking at Ash with a serious face, " _These are very serious accusations that you are claiming Ash, are you sure that everything you said happened?"_ He asked, blinking when Ash seemed to go back to anger: " _Of course I'm sure Professor, ask Steelix about Brock and I can show you the damages Misty did to Pidgeot, I even have other witnesses her were present when everything happened"_

At the mention of witnesses, Oak raised a brow in curiosity, leaning forwards whilst folding his hands, " _What kind of witnesses?"_ He asked curiously, watching as Ash took his hat off and placed it to the side, " _Other than me and my own pokemon, with Brock their is the referee, he witnessed the whole thing along with Steelix here,"_ He started explaining, indicating to the poke'ball still placed on the table, " _As for Misty, her sister's were their when everything happened, as well, a few people who were traveling with me witnessed it as well"_

 _"Other than them, I have Pidgeot's wounds, the Cerulean City Nurse Joy who looked after Pidgeot and..."_ Oak raised a brow when Ash stopped, hesitation in his voice as his hands hovered over his belt, before his face hardened and he plucked two more poke'balls from his belt, " _I have both Croconaw, the pokemon Misty used to hurt Pidgeot, and Kingler, both the two I had, Misty had them - At the same time, Brock had Gigalith, my old Boldor"_ Ash finished, placing the other two poke'ball onto the table as well.

The professor blinks as Ash explained the locations of two of his old pokemon, which eventually lead to the professor frowning, " _I wondered what happened to all of your pokemon after you left, if what you say is true, I can have them, and anyone else who took any of your pokemon done for theft - unless they had your permission to have those pokemon, then its considered stealing"_ Oak told the boy, who nodded at the mans words.

 _"Right now I'm more concerned about Steelix, Croconaw, Kingler and Pidgeot. I don't know if Croconaw or Kingler suffered any abuse from Misty, whilst Steelix has become very withdrawn and depressed over the past week - Pidgeot i'm concerned about, but she is looking healthy, so she should recover properly"_ Ash explained to the man in front of him, who blinked but then looked at the boy with a sense of pride and relief that his love and concern for pokemon of any kind hadn't been lost.

 _"I understand my boy, if you give me some time I can look over the three"_ Oak explained, standing and picking up the three poke'balls, turning and disappearing from the room.

 **\- 10 Minutes -**

Professor Oak walked back into the room with an upset and concerned look on his face, making Ash's brow crease in worry, " _So...? How are they Professor?"_ Ash asked, his eyes staring at the poke'balls in the man's hands in worry.

 _"From what I can tell their are no physical problems with them, but their is something more concerning..."_ Oak explained, setting the poke'balls on to the table and sitting down, looking to Ash with a serious look, " _With the assistance of a local trainers psychic type, the three pokemon were able to explain to me what was troubling them, and what they said was not good"_

 _"Croconaw and Kingler have both been mental abused, how badly I can't pinpoint yet, but the two pokemon were shaking in fear and crying as they explained everything that had happened with Misty - they were frightened to death that I was going to send them back to her"_ Oak told the boy, who frowned in worry - He may not have forgiven the two fully yet, but he still cared for all pokemon!

 _"Steelix on the other hand wouldn't say anything other than that Brock had left him, every time we asked him something he stayed silent: I'm concerned that the sock of being abandoned has hurt Steelix deeply, so, with your permission I would like to keep Steelix here so he can heal, and I can gather more information about if Brock has down anything over the past year"_ Ash nodded instantly at the professors request: he had already planned to ask the professor to look after Steelix, so he has glad the professor had offered.

 _"I have another concern, Croconaw explained to me that another of your old pokemon with Misty is being treated the same way, Buizel, he said that he couldn't grab his poke'ball because Misty didn't have it with her at the time, but he is concerned for his fellow water type"_ Ash nodded - he was a little surprised to learn another of one of his old pokemon were in the same boat as Croconaw and Kingler.

 _"My only other concern is that of the location of your other pokemon..."_ Ash blinked at the professor's words, looking at him in surprise as the realisation hit him, " _Some of my other old pokemon may have been forced to leave me, and are be being abused right now? that's your concern right?"_ Ash asked, a look of concern on his face - Even if his old pokemon had left him and would have to work to earn his trust, he still worried at the potential of any pokemon being hurt.

" _My thoughts exactly my boy, so what I suggest is that you travel and search for your old friends to investigate if they are indeed abusing their pokemon, or if they have indeed stolen some of your old pokemon, if we can gather enough evidence we can file charges against the whole group"_ _Oak suggested, a pained look on his face, "That will include my grandson, i'm not aware if he has any of your pokemon with him, I haven't seen him in quiet some time. I'm sorry I couldn't help you with that..."_

Ash shook his head, standing up to face the professor with a determined look on his face, " _Don't apologise professor, you never stopped believing in me, and with your help we can bring those thieves and abusers to justice, I was already planning to search for them all, but now I will without a doubt find them and find out once a for all"_ Ash finished with passion in his voice, " _You take good care of Steelix, I need to get going if I'm going to bring those criminals to justice"_ Ash explained, picking up the remaining two poke'balls and placing them on is belt before turning to walk away, stopping at the door to look back at the professor who bore a look of shock and pride, " _We will save them Professor, we will"_ With those parting words, Ash left the building, running through the town and back to his friends who were waiting for him.

* * *

 _"Het look! Ash is back!"_ Everyone turned around as Maddison pointed to the approaching boy, all of them smiling at first but quickly changing to looks of concern, " _Everything okay Ash?"_ Jason asked, noticing the new, more determined demeanour and the hard look in his eyes, " _Did something happen?"_

 _"I will explain later, for now we need to go, everyone hop on Charizard or Pidgeot, we need to get to Hoenn"_


	17. An Explanation

Ash squinted his eyes whilst using his hand to block the sun as him, Charizard, Maddison and Richie sored over the ocean, heading towards Hoenn: barley over the horizon Ash could see the outlines of what he thought were buildings - with a satisfied nod, Ash turned his head to his riding companions and nodded at them whilst pulling out a communication radio and pressing the button, " _I can see Hoenn just over the horizon, we should be their in 10 to 15 minutes max"_ Ash spoke into the radio whilst also addressing the two trainers, who nodded in response, " _Roger that Ash, we not that far behind you, wait for us when you land"_ Ash heard Natalie's voice come from the radio, making him nod to himself whilst clipping the radio to his jeans, thanking Arceus that the Professor gave them the radios in case they got separated.

As Hoenn came more and more into view, Ash thought back to the day before:

 _Day Before (one of the only flashbacks I will do fully)_

 _As the group huddled round the newly lit fire, Ash looked around at beach the group sat on: Hoenn was quiet a distance for Kanto, so after full day of flying, Charizard, Pidgeot and Richie's Fearow hd to stop before it got to dark, or before they fell from exhaustion. Looking back to the group surrounding him, he noticed they were all looking at him expectantly, making Ash sigh - he needed to explain to them about everything that was happening._

 _Taking a deep breath Ash started to talk, the other trainers all leaning forward in interest, **"You guys remember what happened at Cerulean City? And what I told you happened at Pewter City?"** Ash asked, everyone nodding with small mumbles of "yes" coming from them,"Richie and A.J know this, but their is a reason that Misty and Brock acted the way they did - I have history with them"_

 _At the admission, Jason and Natalie's eyes widen, realising it made sense for Ash to have a past with the two gym leaders: Maddison just looked at Ash with a small frown, " **Why didn't he tell me? Doesn't he trust me?"** She thought herself, willing herself to ask Ash, "Why didn't you tell us at the time Ash?" She heard herself ask, surprising herself and making her blush when they all turned to her._

 _Ash sighed and ran a hand through hi hair, " **I wasn't 100% sure if I could trust you guys yet, Richie and A.J I've known for a long time so I could trust them, but you three were basically strangers, I wanted to wait until I knew I could trust you" Ash admitted guiltily, earning sympathetic looks from Richie and A.J, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys, but the reason I didn't trust you actually relates to Brock and Misty"**_

 _At his words the three blinked and looked to Ash in confusion, unsure how the two could possibly relates. Ash placed his hat back on his head and placed a hand on Pikachu's back, who had once again fallen asleep in his lap, " **On my first journey, Brock and Misty were travelling companions of mine - they were two of my best friends. We travelled throught Kanto, Johto and the Orange islands together, before Misty hd to leave, then travelled with me throught Hoenn and Sinnoh"** Ash explained, a faint smile on his face at the good memories he had._

 _Looks of shock crossed Jason, Natalie and Maddison's face alongside looks that told Ash they had questions, " **I'll answer the question's at the end"** Ash told them, earning reluctant nods from the three whilst A.J and Richie just gave Ash looks of encouragement: they knew how hard it was for Ash to talk about his past._

 ** _"I loved them both, they were like family to me, but then...something happened"_** _Ash started, his voice quieting down to the point that everyone had to strain to here him, " **A year ago they, along with all the other people I had travelled with turned their backs on, they called me every name you could think - they wanted me to give up on my dream to be a pokemon master...even my own mother agreed with what they were saying "** Ash whispered sadly, a look of anguish on his face._

 ** _"I didn't understand at the time, to be honest I still don't understand now why they did it - but they did, to make matters worse, a lot of the pokemon I had caught over the years agreed with them, I actually had a whole bunch of different pokemon, but most of them didn't believe in me any more, siding with the likes of Brock and Misty"_** _Ash spat out in anger and hurt, his face yielding the same emotions that his voice held._

 ** _"Only 6 of my pokemon still believed in me - so I took my loyal friends and left to train, to get stronger and to prove to everyone that I wasn't a failure"_**

 ** _"So we trained, we got stronger together, made new friends...including you guys, but the hurt I felt from them leaving me like I was nothing? it still haunts me to this day...that's why I wasn't comfortable telling you guys about my past..."_** _Ash finished, looking at the three trainers with guilt, but they all shook their head, looks of understanding on their faces._ ** _"Its okay pal, we get it, it must be hard to get close to new people after what THEY did"_** _Jason spoke up, spitting out the word "they" as he spoke, making Ash smile as Maddison and Natalie nodded in agreement - Richie and A.J just sat back and watched the group converse._

 _" **That leads me to my next point"** Ash spoke again, earning everyone's - including Richie and A.J's - attention, " **Since my other pokemon didn't believe in me anymore, they all took them, I don't know who took who but they took them all. I had assumed they would take them and was hurt, but got over it, but then I sore how Brock and Misty were treating their pokemon like dirt: Brock threw Steelix out like trash whilst Misty forced three of my old water types to betray me, then mental tortured them to battle for her"**_

 _ **"That's why I need to go to Hoenn, two of the traitors are their: Max and May. I don't know if their treating their pokemon like Misty and Brock are, but I need to know - I may be angry at my old pokemon, but I can't stand to see any pokemon in pain! Plus I also don't know if their are other pokemon that were forced into leaving me! If their are, I have to save them...I have to"**_

 _Back To The Present Day_

Ash smiled at the memory, looking forwards as the outlines of Slateport City came into view, " _Lets go pay traitors 5 and 6 a visit"_


	18. Confessions

Standing outside the Petalburg Gym, Ash smirked at the sign on the door, " _Everyone gather to meet the new gym leader: Maz Maple!"_ was plastered in childish cartoon letters, telling Ash that the smartass boy he had travelled with had written the sign himself, " **Still a child after all these years..."** Ash though to himself as he pushed the doors open and walked inside, A.J, Richie, Maddison not far behind - Jason and Natalie had gone to explore the surrounding grassy areas for pokemon: Ash didn't mind, only he out of them all had been to a region outside Kanto before, so the group had worked out a deal that in the next region, A.J and Richie could explore, whilst Maddison had voted to stick with Ash, being that he was who she trusted the most.

Walking into the traditionally decorated Gym, Ash looked around, noticing two trainers talk to the side, walking over to them, Richie, A.J and Maddison close behind, Ash coughed to get their attention, making them turn to face him, " _Excuse me, have you seen the gym leader? I want to battle him"_ He asked politely, his eye starting to twitch as the two trainers laughed at him.

 _"You want to challenge Max?! well its your funeral! Hey max! your next victim is here!"_ One of the trainers shouted into the back, both the trainers smirking as one of the panel doors slid open to reveal the gym leader.

Now aged 13, Max had grown significantly since he last travelled with Ash at the age of 8, now standing just slightly taller then May did at his age, his short dark blue hair was styled the same, but was longer at the back, almost resembling a mullet. He still wore his thick black glasses and wore a similar outfit to what Norman had worn when he was the gym leader.

Ash raised a brow at the lack of arrogance Max displayed, who was looking at the trainer who had called him in annoyance, " _I've told you to stop saying that, its doesn't give the Gym a good reputation if you treat challenger's like dirt!"_ Max scolded the two, who shrugged and walked away, making Ash sigh and take his glasses off to wipe them, " _Sorry about them, they sore me win my first battle as a gym leader and now they think I'm unbeatable..."_ The glasses-wearing boy explained, placing his glasses back on and finally looking at Ash and the others.

Max instantly noticed Ash and Pikachu, his mouth falling open in shock as he recognised the duo from the look in their eyes, " _A-Ash? P-Pikachu? I-Is that you?"_ He asked in disbelief as he stared at the two, oblivious to the people with him, " _Good to see that you remember Max"_ Ash spat at the boy, making Max's eyes widne in shock, running forwards and throwing himself at the raven-haired boy.

Ash readied himself, expecting the boy to be trying to attack him but was surprised when he felt the boys arms wrap around his waist, burying his face in Ash's chest as he started to cry, making Ash look at the boy with mixed emotions, " _What the hell are you doing?!"_ Ash demanded, prying the boy from him and pushing him away, watching as Max fell to his knees whilst still crying.

 _"I'M SO SORRY ASH!"_ The boy sobbed, making Ash look at Pikachu in confusion - Maddison, A.J and Ritchie looking to each other with equal confusion, " _I'm sorry I betrayed you! I-I didn't want, I really didn't! but I got scared! I didn't know what to do!"_ The boy continued to sob, his entire body shaking as he cried. Ash just stared at the weeping boy for a few seconds before walking over to the boy and forcing him to stand up, " _You better start explaining yourself right now Max"_

With a small hiccup, Max nodded quickly and scrambled to stand up on his own, " _L-Last year...M-May came to me and told me that you had tried to steal Glaceon...I didn't believe her, I knew that you would never steal anyones pokemon! I confronted her and told her that I knew she was lying, then mom and dad came in, them and May were telling me that you were nothing but trouble, and that you weren't a good role model for me...t-t-they told me about what they were planning to do, they told me if I didn't go through with it they would disown me...I-I'm sorry! I was scared, I didn't want to lose my family!"_ The boy explained, ducking his head down in shame as Ash looked at him, " _I'm so sorry..."_

Ash held a hand up, silencing the boy in front of him whilst looking at him with suspicouse eyes, " _Why should I believe you Max? How can you prove that your telling the truth?"_ Ash questioned the boy, who's eyes widened at his question. Wracking his brain for an answer, Max suddenly ran out the room, disappearing into the back for a few seconds before appearing with two poke'balls, " _I can prove, here, watch!"_ Throwing the poke'balls in the air, Max and the rest of the group watched as the two pokemon emerged from the poke'balls: it was Bulbasaur and Buizel.

 _"Bulbasaur and Buizel were like me, they didn't want to betray you, but were given no choice! Buizel got beaten badly till he agreed, and Bulbasaur was lied to! May lied, saying that her Bulbasaur was having his children, and threatened to let him never see them if he didn't leave you"_ Max began explaining when Ash looked at him, waiting for an explanation, " _Misty took Buizel, I don't know what happened but she called me and told me she didn't want him anymore, so she gave him to me...As for Bulbasaur, I knew what May was telling him was a lie, but I was too scared to say anything, but he chose to come with me, I think he knew I was in the same boat as him, not wanting to leave you, but being scared of what we could lose..."_

Ash blinked slowly as he processed the information, looking down at Buizel and Bulbasaur who were looking up at Ash with a mix of happiness/guilt and shock, " _Battle me"_ Ash's request made Max blink in surprise, looking at his old role model in confusion, " _I came here to battle you, and battle you I will - if your telling me the truth I will be able to figure that out through a battle - the best way to find out the truth is to battle"_ Ash explained, reaching to his belt and grabbing a poke'ball with a serious face, the others all nodding to each other and walking to sit on the side lines, " _Get ready to fight Max, this battle will show me if what your saying is true of_ _not...Plus think of this as me keeping my promise that when you became a trainer, that we would battle"_

* * *

Standing on his side of the field, Max looked at Ash nervously but determinedly - If a battle would help show Ash the truth, then he would battle him, " **Plus I really want to battle him,..."** Max silently though to himself with a faint smile, dropping it and turning back to the field with a poke'ball in his hand, " _Ash, if this is what I have to do to prove to you that what I'm saying is true, then I'll do it! Go Gardevior!"_ He told the trainer facing him, releasing his first pokemon to the field.

Ash nodded with a slight smile coming to his face as Max's Gardevior appeared on the field, " _Nice to see you went back for that Ralts after all this time Max,"_ _Ash commented, making Max smile and nod, "_ _Of course I went back, I promised I would and I never break a promise!"_ He exclaimed with passion, making Ash nod once again as he threw his own poke'ball into the air.

 _"Cookie! Cookie!"_ Kingler cried as he appeared on the field, snapping his claws as he stood in a battle position, a look of sheer joy in his eyes - Ash only battled with pokemon he trusted, so Kingler was ecstatic that Ash finally trusted him again. Max grinned and called out to Gardevior, _"Use_ **Magical Leaf** _Gardevior!"_ Ash watched as the psychic pokemon summoned dozens of bright green leaves surrounded with psychic energy and sent them flying towards Kingler, " _Use_ **Bubblebeam** _to trap the leaves, then use_ **Crabhammer"**

Eager to please his old trainer, Kingler quickly shot out dozens of bubbles, which closed around the leaves, each bubble exploding with the leaves in side of them: as the dust cleared Gardevior was surprised when Kingler appeared, having jumped into the mini explosion, hitting her with a powerful **Crabhammer,** _"Gardevior!"_ Max shouted in concern as the attack connected with the psychic type making her fall to the ground, " _Can you keep going?"_

Gardevior surrounded her body with psychic energy, lifting herself of the ground and back to a standing position, " _Gardevior!"_ She called out, eager to battle the clearly strong pokemon in front of her. Max nodded and called out to her, " _That's great, now use_ **Thunderbolt!"** Gardevior charged the electricity psychically between her hands and shooting it at Kingler before Ash could call him to dodge.

 _"COOKIE!"_ Kingler cried in pain as the super effective attack made a direct hit, " _Try and withstand it Kingler,"_ Ash ordered, a hint of worry in his voice as one of the pokemon he hadn't trained with for long was hit with the super effective attack, _"Cookie..."_ Kingler replied, grinding his teeth in pain as he tried to withstand the attack. Gardevior's attack came to an end, small sparks of electricity coming of Kingler's body as he panted with his eyes closed, " _Can you keep going Kingler?"_ Ash asked the crab pokemon, who shook his body and nodded at Ash, small electric burns covering his body, " _Alright, use_ **Vice Grip"**

Kingler jumped forwards, snapped his claw towards Gardevior, closing his claw around her arm, making her cry out in pain, " _Gardevior!"_ She cried out as the claws closed around her arm, " _Gardevior, use_ **Teleport** _then use_ **Magical Leaf** _again_ _!"_ Max called out, watching as Gardevior disappeared, reappearing behind Kingler and shooting the attack at his back.

 _"Cookie!"_ Kingler exclaimed as the attack hit his back, making the crab pokemon hit the ground, sending up some dust. As the dust cleared, Kingler rolled onto his back, swirls in his eyes, " _Coo...ki..."_

 _"Return Kingler"_ Ash spoke calmly, raising the fainted pokemon's poke'ball, watching as the red light shot out and returned him. looking at the poke'ball, Ash smiled and nodded, " _You did great for your first real battle"_ Placing the poke'ball back on his belt, Ash grabbed his next poke'ball as he watched Max praise Gardevior, " _Not bad Max, lets see how you do against my next one"_

Throwing his second poke'ball in the air, Max's eyes widened in awe as none other than Charizard appeared, roaring upon release and stomping its foot, getting ready to shoot a **Flamethrower** before Ash stopped him, " _Not here Charizard, you'll burn a hole though the roof"_ Cjarizard huffed but nodded and faced Max, a look of anger on his face as he rocognised him as one of the traitors, " _RAWRRRR!"_

Snapping out of his trance, Max looked at Gardevior, " _You want to keep going?"_ He asked, nodding when Gardevior nodded in response. With a smile on his face, Ash looked at Charizard, " **Flamethrower"** Charizard roared once more before shooting the scorching hot flames at Gardevior, " _Dodge!"_ Max commanded loudly, but he was to late as the flames engulfed the psychic type, " _GARDEVIOR!"_ Max shouted as the flames quickly died down, running over to his pokemon who was no lying on the floor with swirls in her eyes.

Kneeling down to her side, Max cradled the defeated pokemon in his arms with a smile, " _You were amazing Gardevior, take a long rest"_ He spoke gently, returning Gardevior as she smiled at Max and nodded. Standing up, Max returned to his position and looked at Ash with a smile before holding his hands up, " _I really don't want to, but I surrender"_ His words made everyone in the room gasps in surprise - Max just smiled and lowered his arms, " _I don't have any pokemon that can stand up to your Charizard, I don't want my friends to get hurt"_

Ash and Charizard looked at each other with a smile: returning the fire lizard to his poke'ball, Ash walked over to the crestfallen boy and puts hand on his shoulder, making Max look up at Ash, " _You passed my test Max, I believe you"_ Max's eyes widened at Ash's smile and words, moving his arms to hug him only for Ash to step back to avoid the hug. Shooting Ash a hurt and confused look, Ash shook his head, " _I believe you, but I don't forgive or trust you yet, you will have to earn my trust and forgiveness back"_

Max looked at him curiously, " _How can I earn your trust and forgiveness?"_ Ash looked down at the boy and stared into his eyes before speaking, " _You can start by telling me where your sister is"_


	19. BrotherSister Moment

Ash stood by the window of his room in the pokemon center, staring out the seemingly endless darkness of the night, " _Dammit May...Where the hell are you?"_ Ash spoke to himself, placing one hand on the window as he tried to think about where May could be, " _She isn't in Hoenn or Kanto, Last i knew she wa sin Johto but its been over a year...Dammit!"_ Ash growled out, slamming in his hand on the window, eyes closed in frustration.

Sharing a room with the frustrated boy Jason looked at Ash from his bed with worry, " _I know your frustrated that Max couldn't tell us anything, but staying up late won't help Ash..."_ Ash turned to look away from the window to look at Jason as he talked to him, " _You said she was a contest freak right? then maybe she's in Sinnoh with that other girl you said you traveled with, Dawn was it?"_ Ash nodded at his question, thinking about the possibility of May being in Sinnoh, " _Plus, didn't Max say a boy named Tracy was working with the Professor of this region? Why don't you deal with him first? you never know, he might know where she is..."_ Jason finished with a yawn, moving to lie down in his bed and pulling the sheets up with a yawn.

Ash didn't reply, instead turning back to look out the window for a few seconds before stalking oer to his bed and sitting down, Pikachu - who also couldn't sleep climbing into his lap as the boy pulled out a piece of paper: Looking at the paper, Ash scowled but sighed - The paper had a list of all the traitors and what pokemon they had - all thanks to Max, who had told the boy who had taken which of his pokemon:

Brock had ended up with **Gigalith, Palpitated** \- Now a **Seismitoad** \- and **Krookodile** : Misty use to have **Croconaw, Kingler** and **Buizel,** but still had possession of **Oshawott** \- Who Max had confirmed to be a **Dewott** now - and **Corphish**. Tracy had **Glalie, Pignite, Muk** and **Unfezant** , whilst May use to have **Bublasaur,** but still, according to Max had **Leavanny, Swellow** and **Noctowl:** As for Dawn, she had **Quilava** and **Torkoal** **.** As for **Snorlax, Heracross, Torterror, Staraptor** and **Gliscor** \- Gary had claimed them as his own - Iris had taken **Gible** whilst Cilan had claimed **Snivy.**

Looking over the list of pokemon and people, Ash crossed of **Gigalith, Croconaw, Kingler Buizel** And **Bulbasaur** from the list: he had 4 out of the 5 of them with him - and he already had confirmation from his own eyes, as well as from Steelix that the rock pokemon had willingly left him and was happier with Brock. Even though it hurt Ash to know extent, he reluctantly would leave the whole legal process to the professor - plus, even if he was hurt and angry, he wouldn't force a pokemon to follow him if they didn't want to.

Ash's anger diminished as both he and Pikachu yawned: Knowing he wouldn't function without sleep, Ash laid down on his bed, Pikachu moving to curl up on the end. Both trainer and pokemon closed their eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep with their mission still on their minds:

 _\- Ash's Dream -_

 _Ash stood in a seemingly endless void of blackness - nothing around behind him or in front. Looking around in his dream, Ash's face changed to shock when the remaining traitors he was looking for appeared in front of him, "So i finally found you guys" Ash spoke to the group in front of him, throwing his poke'balls into the air to release all his pokemon, "Let's go guys, lets get are friends back!"_

 _Ash blinked when all the pokemon in front of him seemed to ignore him - his face turning to shock and hurt when they all turned to face him, backing up so they stood with the traitors. Before Ash could speak, the cold laugh of Gary Oak sounded through his ears, "Looks like your pokemon have finally figured out how much of a loser you are Ash-y Boy" The boy taunted, the rest of the group joining his laughter as tears began falling down Ash face._ _Turning to look at the Pikachu ion his shoulder, Ash recoiled at the hateful glare the electric mouse was shooting him as he raised a paw, scratching his claws across Ash's face - making Ash cry in pain as blood dripped down his face- before jumping off his shoulder and standing with the other's: no longer on Ash's side._

 _To add insult to injury, Ash watched as his newest friends appeared in front of him: A.J, Richie, Jason, Natalie and even Maddison sneered at Ash before sending their own pokemon out, "Man we were stupid for following you!" A.J shouted at the boy, breaking the boys heart just that little bit more, "I should have figured that you were weak from the Indigo League when i beat you!" That was Richie, who nodded at Sparky who jumped next to his own Pikachu, both their cheeks sparking in anger._

 _"You only beat my first pokemon by luck, then you ran away after the second one like a pathetic loser" Jason insulted the boy, standing in a pose identical to the one Gary was in, "Exactly, only rookie trainers who know nothing about raising pokemon would run off in the middle of a battle" Natalie finished off, "To think i though you had potential, or that you were cute! Ha! I really was stupid!"_

 _"Pikachu..." Ash whispered in despair, watching as the traitors called all their pokemon to stand with his own, ordering them to attack Ash - who turned and started running away, "Everyone...Why...?_

 _\- End Of Dream -_

" _Why, Why, Why..."_ Ash repeated over and over as he tossed and turned in his sleep, a hint of sweat covering his face alongside dry tear tracks on his cheeks, " _Ash? Ash wake up, your having a nightmare!"_ Jason shouted at the tautened boy, shaking the boy in a desperate attempt to wake the boy. The sleeping boy's eyes opened as he shot up, panting heavily as more tears began to gather in his eyes: looking around the room rapidly, Ash released a shaky breath upon realizing where he was, " **It was just a dream..."** He thought as both Pikachu and Jason looked at him in worry.

 _"Ash...?"_ The words made Ash look at Jason slowly and with hesitation, " _Ash...a-are you okay?"_ the spiky haired boy asked, gasping slightly when he sore the look of hurt, despair and vulnerability in Ash's eyes - Thinking quickly, Jason stood up and went to the door, only to be stopped when Ash grabbed his arms, looking at the standing boy with the same look in his eyes, " _Please don't leave me..."_

Jason's heart clenched at the amount of fear in Ash's voice - whilst at the same time trying to hide his shock at the change in Ash's attitude towards him: he had only ever seen Ash as the calm and cool trainer, but never seeing him as vulnerable as he was right now - placing a hand on Ash arm with a smile, Jason gently soothed the boy, " _I'll be right back, i'm going to get someone..."_ Ash shook but nodded and slowly released the boy, pulling his knees to his chest and hiding his face in his knees as Jason left the room.

* * *

Silence filled the room for a few minutes before the creaking of the door broke the silence - slowly lifting his head, Ash looked to the door to see who had walked in: Maddison

 _"Ash...What happened?"_ The 12 year old girl asked Ash, closing the door gently behind her, hiding her shock at the broken look that was in Ash's eyes, " _J-Jason said you were having a nightmare...d-do you want to talk about it?"_ She gently asked as she sat on the edge of Ash's bed, growing concerned from the lack of a response from the boy. Suddenly, Ash jumped up and threw his arms around Maddison, tears streaming down his face as he sobbed into her hair, " _P-please do't leave me, please! I-I'll get stronger..."_

Maddison blinked in surprise at the hug and the words, tears filling her own eyes as the strong boy in front of her broke down. Wrapping her arms around his neck, Maddison hugged him back with all her might whilst whispering to him, " _I'm not going anywhere..."_ After a few minutes, Ash's crying had come to a stop as he let Maddison go, sitting back down on his bed and wiping his eyes, " _I-I'm sorry"_

 _"Don't apologize...do you want to talk about it?"_ Maddison comforted the boy, watching as Pikachu - who had watched the exchange - jump into Ash's lap and hug his trainers stomach. Stroking the top of his best friend with a watery smile, Ash nodded and slowly explained his nightmare to the girl in front of him, " _I-i thought everyone had left me all over again...I-i can't lose everyone again, i can't..."_

By the end of Ash's explanation, Maddison had a small, sad smile on her face as she shook her head, taking Ash's hand and squeezing it gently, making the still upset trainer look at the girl, " _It was just a bad dream Ash, you know none of us would ever do that to you, your pokemon as well, they all love you - i love you - y-you've become like the older brother i always wanted - someone who could protect me and be their when i need them"_ She explained, an embarrassed blush spreading across her cheeks, " _I know its kind of silly, a-and i understand if you don't see me like a sister! I-its just how i fe-"_ She rambled on, stopping when she heard a small laugh come form Ash.

Looking to the slightly laughing boy with a little hurt - thinking he was laughing at her words, she was surprised to see happiness blooming in his to replace his previous broken look, a smile on his face as he pull the girl into another hug, Pikachu now sitting on his shoulder so he wouldn't be crushed, " _You have no idea how happy i am to here that Maddison...ever since i met you i felt the need to protect you, i-i started seeing you like my little sister...i-if you want i would like to be your older brother - even if its not by blood"_

Maddison gave her own watery, but happy simle and hugged him back happily, " _I'd like that a lot...Brother"_

* * *

The group now all stood outside the pokemon center in Petalburg City. Everyone turned to Ash, who stood a few feat in front of the group, stretching his arms, " _Where are we going first Ash?"_ Natalie asked, blushing a little when Ash turned to look at hr with fire in his eyes, " **He's kinda cute...wait what?"** Natalie thought to herself, blushing more at her thought's which Ash seemed to either not notice or ignored.

" _Lets go to Littleroot Town and pay the professor and his no-good assistant a little visit"_


	20. Everyone's Favorite Character: Tracy!

Just on the outskirts of Littleroot Town, Ash was in the middle of a battle with a wild Poochyena: Pikachu stood facing the wild dog pokemon whilst his friends all stood behind him, watching as Ash fought the Poochyena, looks of confusion on heir faces: They had passed many wild pokemon on their adventure/Mission, why did Ash suddenly stop to fight a wild Poochyena?

 _"Pikachu, use a weak_ **Thundershock,** _we don't want to hurt him"_ Ash ordered, watching as Pikachu easily immobilized the weak Poochyena with his electric attack. the group, aside from Maddison, all blinked in shock as Ash threw a poke'ball, easily capturing the wild pokemon. Walking over and picking up the poke'ball, Ash turned to his friends with a smile whilst placing the poke'ball in his bag, " _Let me explain - When i traveled with Max, he helped a Poochyena evolve once by becoming friends with it after the rest of the Poochyena's pack had already evolved - I remember Max was really upset when he had to leave, so i want to show him that i really do forgive him, so this little lady is a gift for Max - i'll drop it off once were done in Littleroot town"_

The group nodded slowly, the confusion still on their faces as they didn't understand the point, but they trusted Ash - letting him do what he thought was right. Maddison smiled and nodded when Ash handed her the newly caught poke'ball, " _You'l look after her right sis? Maybe him and Lumiere can become friends..."_ Ash said as he handed her the poke'ball, the group's look turning to smiles as they sore the brotherly-sisterly exchange between the two trainers: " _Of course ill look after her Big bro..."_ Maddison confirmed, clipping the poke'ball to her belt with a smile.

With a simple nod, Ash waited as Pikachu jumped back to his shoulder before facing the small town that lay in front of him. Turning back to the group, and with a unanimous nod they all walked towards the small town.

* * *

Ash confidently knocked on the door of Professor Bitch's door, a prepared look on his face as his friends stood behind him - ready to support their friend when and if he needed them to. Professor Birch looked at Ash in surprise when he open the door to reveal the boy, his trademark hat on his head and his Pikachu on his shoulder, " _Ash? Ash Ketchum? My goodness its been nearly 3 years! Please, come in come in!"_ Birch exclaimed with a smile on his face, ushering the group inside.

 _"Thank you Professor, it has been a long time"_ Ash replied politely, a smile on his face as he walked insid the young professor's lab, his friends following closely behind, " _Someone told me that you had a new assistant named Tracy. Is he here?"_ Ash asked, watching as the professor's eyes lit up, a proud smile on his face as he nodded, " _Ah! so the word has spread! Tracy Gardner is truley any professor's dream assistant! let me go get him for you! make yourselves at home in the meantime!_

Nodding in thanks, Ash with held his remark to sit on the couches located around the lab, his friends following suit and sitting down as well. A few minutes later Professor Birch returned with Tracy, who's smile faded as soon as he sore Ash, " _A-Ash?" "Nice to see you to Tracy...Could you give us a minute please professor, i need to talk to Tracy about something important"_ Birch blinked but nodded, turning to walk out the room, closing the door behind him to give them some privacy.

As soon as the professor left, the forced smile on Tracy's face was replaced with a scowl as he cross his arms and glared at Ash - he took notice of the people sat with Ash, but chose to ignore them and jsut focused on Ash, " _What are you doing here Ketchum? I thought you high-tailed it out of society"_ Tracy spat harshly, to which Ash stood up and squared himself up to Tracy, a hard look in hi face, " _Cut the crap Tracy, i'm here for buisness, i KNOW you and the other's took the pokemon that didn't go with, i also know that some of those pokemon were forced to leave you, so i am here to battle the pokemon that you have that were oce mine - if i believe they didn't want to leave me, i am taking them back"_

 _"You cant do that!"_ Tracy exclaimed in shock, making Ash smirk and the other's laugh as ash threw four poke'balls in the air to reveal the pokemon he had managed to rescue, " _I can't? these pokemon as you know where lied to, beaten and forced to leave me, then you and the other straight up stole my pokemon, so i don't think your in any position to say i can't take back pokemon that aren't even yours"_ Ash finsihed after treutning the four pokemon in front of him, as Tracy shook the shock form his face and galred at him, a smirk slowly growing on his face, " _Fine, lets just get this over with - then i can prove to you that your pokemon don't give two craps about you anymore, and you can get the hell out of her"_

* * *

Ash and Tracy stood facing each other on the battlefield professor Birch had behind his lab. Ash looked at Tracy calmly and spoke with authority in his voice, " _I know you have Glalie, Pignite, Muk and Unfezant, so i want to battle them"_ Tracy frowned but nodded, pulling his first poke'ball out and throwing it in the air to reveal Unfezant. Ash watched with a straight face as the Unova-region bird pokemon appeared, cawing her name as she appeared.

Upon noticing Ash, Unfezant frozen for a second before roaring her name loudly, glaring at ash as she flapped her wings, making Ash frown and Tracy smile smugly, " _I told you your old pokemon didn't give a crap about you"_ Tracy smugly stated, watching as Ash reached for his own poke'ball, sending out Zangoose, " _Whatever Tracy, lts just battle so i can see what the other's think"_

 **"Guess Unfezant left willingly"** Ash thought bitterly, watching as the hatred glare turned from Ash to Zangoose, " _Zangoose, use_ **Double Claws"** Zangoose quickly duplicated itself before sharping his dark glowing claws against each other, sharply raising his attack, _"Use_ **Slash"** All the Zangoose clones ran towards the female bird pokemon as Tracy lazily ordered, " _Fly into the air and use_ **Quick Attack** _into_ **Arial Ace"** To which Unfezant cawed, flying into the air as Zangoose slashed his claws, missing the bird pokemon as she charged into **Quick Attack** before her body and beak turned light blue into her **Arial Ace.**

 _"Maneuver 3 Zangoose"_ Ash stated, watching as Unfezant sped through and destroyed each of the Zangoose clones before closing in on the real one. Zangoose waited till Unfezant was just about to hit him before he bent backwards and raised a purple covered claw and struck Unfezant's stomach. The bird pokemon's eyes widen as Zangoose bent backwards, making her glide over the pokemon: Crying out in pain as the **Poison Jab** hit her lower abominable, sending her upwards sharply.

 _"Unfezant!"_ Tracy shouted as the pokemon flew up in the air, her eyes squeezed closed in pain, " _Snap out of it! Use_ **Hyper Beam!"** Unfezant eyes sprang open at Tracy's voice: quickly regaining her leverage in the air, Unfezant opened her beak as swirling energy began to charge, shooting the powerful **Hyper Beam** and hitting Zangoos,e sending him skidding back and hitting a tree with his back as an explosion of dust surrounded the mongoose pokemon.

Tracy smirked, thinking it was all over, but grew confused when he saw a smirk on Ash's face, " _There's no way..."_ Tracy gasped out as the explosion cleared to reveal Zangoose standing, a single mark on his forehead from the attack. Zangoose growled, bearing his teeth at Tracy who cursed to himself, knowing that Unfezant wouldn't be bale to avoid the next attack, " _Dammit..."_

 _"No more holding back Zangoose"_ Ash told the growling pokemon, making Tracy's eyes go wide at the fact Zangoose had been holding back, " _Finish this with_ **Brick Break"** Zangoose an forwards once more, leaping into the air with his front legs glowing bright maroon red as he slammed them down on Unfezant's head, who rocketed down and slammed into the floor loudly, sending another dust cloud up as she hit the ground.

Zangoose landed in front of Ash who nodded to the pokemon before they both looked towards the dust cloud which had began to clear: Unfezant lay in a small crater, bruises and small scratches all over her body alongside having swirls in her eyes, " _Un-fez...ant..."_ She cried weakly as Tracy wordlessly returned her, placing the poke'ball on his belt, an angry glare shooting towards Ash and Zangoose, " _You just got lucky chump, you won't win anymore! GO GLALIE!"_ Tracy screcched hurling his second poke'ball with all his power - which opened to reveal the floating Ice type, " _GLALIE!"_ he roared upon exiting his poke'ball shooting an **Ice Beam** from his mouth into the sky in anger - an anger that Ash had seen before.

 _"_ **Only over-confident pokemon act that way..."** Ash thought to himself as he called Zangoose back, patting him on the head gently with a smile, " _Great job, Maneuver 3 is a lot stronger than last time, keep it up buddy"_ Ash praised the mongoose pokemon, who grinned and puffed his chest up as Ash returned him, reaching for his next poke'ball and throwing it.

 _"Hound!"_ Houndoom shouted, shaking her body and stretching her back leg's as she appeared on the field: Ash nodded at the fire dog before looking at Glalie who was looking at Ash with a mix of emotions - mostly surprise and wonder - but Ash didn't see longing, pain or sadness, so he mentally crossed Glalie of his list, " **Thats a nope from Glalie...oh well..."**

With a knowing smirk at Ash's crestfallen face, Tracy shouted out, " _Show that wannabe-trainer that type advantage isn't everything! Use_ **Ice Beam** _to freeze the field!"_ Glalie opened his mouth, quickly shooting the ice attack across the field - a thin layer of ice now covering everywhere but the small area of dirt that Houndoom stood in, " _Great! Now use_ **Double Team** _and_ **Icy Wind!"** Tracy called out with a grin, watching as seven duplicates of Glalie appeared, floating and surrounding Ash's Houndoom as they all opened their mouths and released their **Icy Wind** towards the doom dog.

Houndoom took the attack easily, sitting down to lick her paw in a taunting manner as the attack had little-to-no effect on her, " _Funny, you call me the loser when you use a technique i once used, Houndoom, jump and use_ **Flamethrower Spin"** Ash laughed out, shaking his head as he watched Houndoom gracefully jump into the air - angling her **Flamethrower** south, the hell hound spun her boy as the fire shot from her mouth, destroying each of the clones and hitting the real Glalie who cried out in pain as the super effective attack consumed him.

Landing with her usual grace, Ash patted Houndoom's head who nuzzled her trainers hand, " _Return him Tracy"_ Ash stated as he sore Glalie slowly float back into the air, sever scorch burns covering his body, " _I may hate you both, but i'm not going to hurt a pokemon unnecessarily"_ Tracy growled in slight embarrassment and anger at Ash's patronizing tone, raising Glalie's poke'ball and pointing it at him as he shook his head with difficulty, a glare in his own face, " _Glai-Glalie!"_ He shouted, his pride having been damaged from taking so much damage from just one **Flamethrower.**

" _I know you want to keep going, but your badly hurt, and as much as i hate to admit, that loser is right, you need to rest"_ Tracy explained with an upset face, making Glalie turn to glare at Ash, upset that he had upset and hurt his new trainer. Shaking his head, Tracy returned the angry Ice pokemon as he started to charge towards Houndoom, placing the poke'ball back on his belt, " _Stupid arrogant pokemon..."_

 _"Don't insult him"_ Ash spat at Tracy, making the sketcher look at Ash with a raised brow, " _Pokemon only get arrogant when their trainers let them, its your fault Glalie was over-confident, not his. Now send out your next pokemon"_ Ash scolded the boy, who's face began tinting a red color in anger as Ash told him off, " _WHAT DO YOU KNOW?! MIND YOUR OWN DAM_ _BUSINESS! DESTROY THIS PEST EMBOAR!"_ Tracy scream, throwing his third poke'ball as he seethed in anger.

Ash rolled his eyes at the childish reaction, returning Houndoom silently and watching as the evolved form of his Pignite appeared to the field: appearing in a flash of white light, Emboar flexed his two large muscles, shouting his name as the flames on his neck flared to life, " _Emboar!"_ Looking around, Emboar's mouth fell open in shock when he noticed Ash staring at him, an understanding and hoping look in his eyes. To Tracy's surprise, but to Ash's, Emboar roared in excitement, stomping over to Ash and picking him up in a hug, tears gathering in his eyes. " _What the hell Emboar?! Get back over here!"_

Patting the slightly upset fire type's head, Ash indicated for him to let him go: once Ash was back on the ground, he shot Tracy a straight face," _Something tell's me Emboar wants to be with me, Pikachu, grab his poke'ball"_ before Tracy could blink, Pikachu had ran up to him, smacking the poke'ball out his hand, grabbing it with his teeth and running it over to Ash who took it with a nod. Tracy's face went bright red as he pointed at Ash, " _POKEMON THIEF!"_ Ash just laughed and called the happy and teary-eyed Emboar back to the poke'ball putting it inside his pocket, " _Says the person who stole my pokemon - they may not have wanted to go with me, but you took them without my permission - THAT'S theft"_

Tracy continued to glare at Ash whilst reaching for his final poke'ball, " _SHUT UP! FINISH HIM MUK!"_ Tracy roared, releasing the purple pokemon to the field, who roared and glared at Ash with anger, having herd the exchange from his poke'ball - and was now angry that Ash had *stolen* Emboar.

 **"Guess Muk is out as well"** Ash thought somberly, looking at Pikachu with a nod as th electric mouse ran onto the field, cheek's sparking as he glared at the pile of purple ooze, _"USE_ **BODY SLAM!"** Muk lifted his large body and lowered it quickly, trying to hit the electric pokemon, " **Agility,** _keep dodging"_ Pikachu easily dodged the lumbering pokemon's body, maneuvering out the way as Muk followed him, continuously trying to land on him as Tracy shouted, " _FOLLOW HIM AND KEEP USING_ **BODY SLAM!"**

Ash watched as Pikachu dodged every attempt that Muk tried to cover him: after a few minutes of dodging the attacks, Tracy began to grow more and more agitated, " _STOP RUNNING AWAY YOU COWARD!"_ Pikachu and Ash's bodies went rigid at the word *Coward*. Cold glares crossed their faces which they both directed at Tracy, " **Thundertail"** Pikachu jumped with a loud cry, his tail glowing silver before being surrounded with electricity, swinging his tail at the panting Muk and slamming it down on his head.

" _Muuuuuk!"_ He cried as the attack hit him, a finall explosion happening upon contact with the electric/steel tail and Muk's head: " _MUK!"_ Tracy shouted/coughed as the explosion covered the field, whilst Ash watched with an emotionless face. Slowly, the smoke began to clear to reveal Muk in an even deeper crater than Unfezant had been in, electricity burns covering his body, as well as electricity sparking of his battered body - the swirls in his eyes clearly showing he was defeated.

Tracy roared in anger and ran towards an unsuspecting Ash, his fist raised as he readied to punch him: Ash noticed at the last second and raised his arms to protect his face, but was alarmed when he heard a female cry, a small thud and a collection of gasps. Slowly lowering his arms, Ash was horrified to see Maddison on the floor, a black eye already starting to show.

Ash's body began to shake in anger, a look of pure hatred filling his eyes as he grasped Tracy and lifted him in the air - the others running over to help Maddison, " _WHAT DID YOU DO?!"_


	21. After Effects And A New Allie

**Warning - Swearing may appear from here on out -**

* * *

Ash paced worriedly outside the Pokemon Center's First Aid room: Maddison was unconscious inside with one of Nurse Joy's assistance's: Richie and A.J, who were sit outside the room on the couches, switched their worried looks from Ash to the room's door - Natalie and Jason had gone to the police station to report Tracy's assault on Maddison. " _Ash sit down, please, this pacing isn't helping your mental state..."_ A.J told Ash, who stopped and looked at A.J with an upset face, " _The doctor is doing his very best, just sat down and try to calm down...please brother..."_

Ash sighed but nodded, sitting down between Richie and A.J, both boys placing comforting hands on Ash's shoulder - they were worried for Maddison as well, but Ash was naturally taking it the hardest. Putting his head in his hands, Ash closed his eyes and thought back to just an hour before:

 _\- 1 Hour Ago-_

 _"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" Ash screamed at a terrified looking Tracy, who's eyes were wide in shock, "YOU HIT MY LITTLE SISTER YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" before Tracy could defend himself with words or his arms, Ash had swung a fist, colliding with the right side of his face, knocking him to the floor as Ash stood over him, his eyes a deadly dark shade of brown that no-one had ever seen before._

 _Tracy screamed as the punch hit him, raising a hand to grip his face that he could already feel beginning to swell as he looked up at Ash in terror, "HOW COULD YOU HIT A GIRL?! YOU SORE MUST HAVE SEEN HER BUT YOU DIDN'T STOP!" Ash continued to shout at, roughly kicking the cowering boy in the side. Going to kick him again, Ash grunted and sharply turned his head when Natalie grabbed Ash's arm with a desperate look on her face, "Now isn't the time Ash! we will deal with that piece of shit later, helps us get Maddison to the Pokemon Center!"_

 _Ash's anger quickly deflated at Natalie's words, sparing a moment to spit on Tracy with one last glare before quickly following Natlie to were Maddison layed on the floor, unconscious: Ash grabbed a poke'ball and called Charizard and looked at him in desparation, "Charizard! i need you to take Maddison to the pokemon Center!" Charizard looked confused at first, but after looking down at Maddison, he jumped into action and picked the girl up, spreading his wings and taking off to the pokemon center._

 _"You two go to the police station, now." Ash instructed Jason and Natalie who looked ready to complain before Ash sharply told them, "_ _Me, A.J and Ritchie will go to the pokemon center and wait for Maddison, That fucker needs to be arrested for what he did"_

* * *

Ash's thoughts were interrupted when he heard the door open, making him lift his head and get to his feet - Richie and A.J standing as well, " _Maddison Green?"_ The doctor asked, looking around and waiting for an answer. Ash quickly raised his hand and hurried over to the doctor, A.J and Ritchie close behind, " _Thats us! Is Maddison okay doctor?!_ Ash asked , looking up at the doctor with worry.

The doctor smiled and nodded, " _She's fine - aside from a black eye and a small concussion, she should be fine after some rest- - the black eye will heal in a few weeks"_ The group of boys sighed in relief at the doctors words, " _Can we see her?"_ A.J asked, watching as the Doctor nodded and let the boys in, " _Of course, don't be to long, needs her rest if she wants to recover"_ The boys nodded and walked into the room: Their hearts clenched when they sore Maddison - she was up on a reclining bed holding an ice pack to her right eye whilst holding her head with the other, her eyes closed in pain.

 _"Maddison..."_ Richie spoke softly, making the injured girl open her left eye and look at the boys, smiling when she sore them only to wince afterwards, " _My head is killing me..."_ She groaned out as she flinched once more whilst the boys each grabbed a chair and sat next to Maddison's bed, " _I'm so sorry Maddison, its my fault for dragging you with me on this stupid mission..."_ Ash apologized with guilt, blinking when Richie, A.J and Maddison( (with a flinch) shook their heads, " _Its not your fault Ash, its that scumbag Tracys - no one knew he would try and attack you"_ A.J told the boy who frowned and looked away as Richie stood up, " _Maddison jsut reacted quicker than we did, me, A.J or Jason should have taken that hit, not Maddison"_

With a shake of his head, Ash looked at Maddison with a serious look, " _Maddison, you have to promise me to never do something so reckless again,"_ Maddison blinked at his words and frowned, " _But Ash-" "No buts"_ Ash interrupted her argument, a stern look on his face, " _I NEVER want you to something like that EVER again okay? That goes for you guys two! If anyone tries to attack me, let me deal with it -you two sore how i easily knocked Tracy on his ass - i appreciate the help and concern, i really do, but i don't ever want to see any of you guys hurt"_

Maddison sighed but eventually nodded, " _Okay"_ Richie nodded as well whilst A.J frowned but sighed, " _Fine, but if you get attacked by more than one person, i'm jumping in! Your tough Ash, but too many people attacking at once could get you really hurt"_ Ash smiled at the defiant response from the boy but nodded whilst grasping his hand across Maddison's bed, " _Alright deal"_

A few minutes passed in comfortable silence, until Ash stood up with a smile, leaning down to press a kiss on Maddison's head in a brotherly way, " _You get some rest lil sis, we will be back in the morning to see how you are okay?"_ Maddison smiled at the kiss and nodded, closing her eyes as A.J and Richie stood up - the three boys wlaking out together.

Closing the door behind them, the three boys turned to each other, " _She was lucky she only got a black eye...she could have been hurt a lot worse..."_ Richie said, walking with the other boys towards the Cafe. A.J nodded whilst walking, " _Thats true - she's a tough girl, taking a plow to the face like that, I'm just glad she's okay...What about you Ash?"_ Turning to face the boy as they walk, Ash snapped out of his thoughts and nodded, " _Even though it was stupid and i'm still worried, she is really tough...but that fucker Tracy...i hope he rots in Jail for what he did"_ Ash growled, making the tww boys nod in agreement, " _Yeah" "Definitely"_

* * *

 _- 15 Minutes Later -_

Ash, A.J and Richie sat down at one of the tables, placing their meals down on the table as they sat down, " _I wonder how long Justin and Natalie are going to be...Its getting pretty late"_ A.J mentioned, picking his fork up and taking a bite of his food: Richie nodded whilst eating his food, stopping to take a small sip of his drink, " _I hope everything is okay..."_ _"everything is fine, here they come now...with someone new?"_ Ash's defenses automatically went up at the site of a new person as he pointed to behined A.J and Richie, were Jason and Natalie were walking towards them with a boy Ash didn't recognize.

The boy looked to be around Ash's age, maybe a little young, with medium length dark purple hair and blue eyes: His outfit reminded him of one his old rivals, Trip but in different colours - he sported light grey jeans and black sneakers, a dark red hooded shirt with a white coat over the top as well as sporting a dark red belt holding 6 poke'balls.

" _Who's he?"_ Ash bluntly asked, pointing to the boy stood between Justin and Natalie - the boy blinked but smiled and held his hand up for Ash to shake, " _My name is Will, its nice to meet you"_ Ash looked at the boys hand for a few seconds, slowly raising his own hand to shake it, " _Ash"_ he stated simply, looking at Just and Natalie for an answer, " _Why is he here?"_ The question made the new boy, Will, blink in surprise at the scratchy tone in Ash's voice.

Jason coughed, making Ash focus on him throught narrowed eyes, _"After you guys left, we were about to leave when Will came bursting out from the tree's - he told us that he sore the whole exchange, then he started to beat the crap out of Tracy..well, beat what was left out of him after you wailed on him obviously"_ Jason explained, making Will blush a little in embarrassment whilst Ash's cold look slowly started to fade, " _I had to get Darmanitan to pry him off Tracy - other than you, i'd never seen a person so angry - anyway, after we got him to calm down, he asked if he could come to the police station with us as a witness: we said yes since more witnesses would be better"_

Ash nodded slowly in understanding, " _What did the police say?"_ Ash asked, focusing on the more important matter at hand - rather than his discomfort from the presence of a stranger, " _They said they would investigate straight away, they asked us to wait at the station for their return but we told them we wanted to come here to check on Maddison - so we arranged for them to come by tomorrow morning for details"_ Natalie explained, making Ash look at her - which made her blush once more, " **Why the Hell do I keep blushing around him?"** Natalie asked herself, not noticing the look Jason had on his face as he noticed her blush.

Ash nodded and looked to Will, " _Will was it? mind if I talk to you outside for a moment?"_ Ash asked, making the boy smile and nod whilst the other's looked at each other nervously, " _Of course, lets go"_ Will replied, walking out the café, Ash following him. Stopping outside the café, Ash watched as Will turned to face him, " _I want to know why you bothered"_ Ash stated, making Will look at Ash in confusion, " _Get involved? What do you mean?"_

 _"Why did you make yourself known to Jason and Natalie? Why didn't you just keep on walking and ignore it? You weren't involved init to start with, why did you get yourself involved when you didn't have to?"_ Ash elaborated, crossing his arms as he asked _, "_ _People only get involved when they want something, so what is it you want?"_

Will blinked in surprise at Ash's words and tone, a small frown on his face as he shrugged _, "_ _I don't want anything, I got involved because I can't stand it when a guy hits a girl, especially when the girl is younger and smaller than them! Its just wrong!"_ Will explained, his small frown turning into a smile, " _But I get why your suspicious because your right - people don't usually get involved in things unless they want something, but all I wanted was to see that guy pay for hurting that girl Maddison, he deserves what's coming to him"_ The purple haired boy finished, shrugging with a relaxed smile.

Ash raised a brow at his laid back attitude but sighed and nodded, " _Alright then - Just so you know, Maddison is fine - sorry I was a little harsh, as you can probly tell I don't trust people a whole lot"_ Ash stiffly apologised, still not fully trusting the boy in front of him who just shrugged in response, " _Anyway, I need to get back to my friends, they will want to know how she is so..."_

Will took the hint and nodded whilst holding his hands up, " _Don't mind me, I need to get a room for the night anyway, i'll see you guys in the morning when the police get here, see yah!"_ The boy explained, turning and walking over to the front desk: Ash watched with a puzzled frown, " _What a strange guy..."_ He mumbled as he turned and walked back into the café.

* * *

 **Any suggestions on what pokemon you guys want to see return to Ash's side? Let me know!**


	22. The Police And The Battle

Ash watched with a satisfied face as he watched Officer Jenny place the hand cuffs around his hands - After him, his friends and the new guy Will spoke to Jenny that morning, she drove him and Will to the lab to arrest the boy on the charges of assault: Ash would have told her about the pokemon theft but he didn't have enough evidence or witnesses yet - but he was happy non the less to see one of his former friends being served justice, " _Tracy Gardner, you are under arrest for physical assault - you have the right to remain silent, anything you can and will be used against you"_ Officer Jenny said to the still injured boy, a clear tone of authority in her voice.

Ash smiled when he sore the state Tracy was: his right eye was puffy and swollen from where Ash had punched up whilst his ribs were wrapped with bandages - but what impressed Ash was damages that WILL had caused the boy - small chunks of the ex-professor assistant's hair were ripped out, his left arm seemed to be broken as it sat in a sling, and bruises covered the left side of Tracy's face and arm.

 _"Thank you for you help in apprehending this wrong doer, would you like a lift back to the Pokemon Center?"_ Jenny asked Ash who smiled and shook his head, " _Thank you Officer, but I think we can walk back..."_ Ash explained ad the officer nodded and climbed into her car and drove Tracy away - Maddison was still back at the pokemon center with his friends whilst Will insisted on going with Ash to witness Tracy's arrest: they had all wanted to go with Ash, but he told them he wanted them to stay there to watch and protect Maddison - he only let Will tag along because he didn't trust the boy yet.

Watching as Jenny drove away, As and Will began walking back towards the pokemon center, " _You did a hell of a lot of damage there kid"_ Ash commented to the confirmed 14-year-old, who blushed a little and shrugged, " _So did you Ash! From the looks of it, you must have broken a couple of his ribs!"_ Will replied with a smile, making Ash shrug in reply, stuffing his hands inside his pocket as he walked, shifting his shoulders a little from the lack of weight that he was use to - Pikachu had asked to stay behind to watch over Maddison, so Ash's shoulder was short one electric mouse.

 _"So...Will, tell me about yourself - I am thankful for what you did for Maddison, but I don't 100% trust you yet"_ Ash explained - his way of learning to trust others was to know more about them: He did the same with Jason and Natalie - both were childhood friends from the Vermillion City in Kanto. Will blinked but smiled and nodded at the boys question as the two walked, " _I guess that makes sense: My name is Will Chryston and I'm 14 - as you know already - I'm originally from Viridian City in Kanto, but me and my dad and little sister moved to Hoenn when I was_ 7," The purple haired boy started a small smile on his face, _"My first pokemon ever was a Mudkip I got from professor Birch - I was actually on my way to see the professor when I witnessed the whole thing with you and that Tracy guy"_

Ash nodded in understanding, stopping to jump over a small ledge before continuing to walk towards the Olddale Pokemon Center, " _Fair enough - so your from Kanto originally? How come you moved here to Hoenn?"_ Ash asked, watching as Will jumped of the ledge, " _If you don't mind me asking of course"_ Ash continued - even though he was curious, he was respectful enough to not force people to talk about upsetting past memories: given his own past it made sense.

Will's normal relaxed face changed to a half sad smile as he shrugged, stuffing his own hands in his pockets as he walked, " _My mom had not long died their from some disease - I think my Dad wanted a new start - so I think that's why we moved here. One day I want to go back to Viridian to see my Mom's grave"_ the boy finished, shaking the sad look of his face and regaining his usual relaxed smile, " _What about you Ash?"_

Ash's body went stiff at the question as they walked, which Will noticed, quickly reassuring the boy, " _I'd understand if you don't trust me enough to tell me yet"_ Ash seemed to relax at the boys words, nodding with a grateful smile, " _Thanks...no-offence to you or anything, I just need to know that I can trust you completely before I tell you my past..."_ Will nodded in understanding as the Pokemon Center came into view, " _Understood, there's the center! lets go and tell the other's about what happened!"_ Will almost shouted, taking his hands out his pocket and beginning to run towards the center, making Ash smile a little as he followed at his normal walking pace, " **He reminds me off me before everything went wrong..."**

* * *

 _"Hey guys!"_ Will shouted as he ran into the Center, Ash calmly following behind him, " _Have we got some good news for you!"_ A.J, Richie, Jason, and Natalie all looked at Will with hopefully looks, whilst Maddison hid her face behind her hair once more as she held onto Pikachu - the other's had told her about Will, but this was the first time she was meeting him.

 _"Yeah? So they took him away?"_ A.J asked, standing up to face the new arrival with his arms crossed in a defensive manner - just like Maddison, him and Richie had been told of this Will character but were unsure of what he was really like. " _Yeah they took him away!"_ Will announced proudly, puffing his chest out as A.J uncrossed his arms and smiled, the rest of the group breathing sighs of relief, " _That's good to here"_

 _"How about me and you have a battle to celebrate?"_ Everyone turned to the sound of Richie's voice, looks of surprise on their faces - Richie just shrugged with a smile, standing up as Sparky jumped from his arms to his shoulder, " _Remember what Ash said that one time? True intentions show themselves during a battle?"_ The group nodded whilst Ash smiled at Richie repeated his words, having planned to challenge Will himself, but was happy for Richie to battle him instead as long as someone he trusted did so.

Will blinked at the request, but soon a grin spread across his face as he clenched his fists with a nod, " _I don't know what that means, but sure! lets battle!"_ with that, Will unclipped a poke'ball from his belt as he turned and walked outside the center, the group following closely behind - Jason running a head with excitement at the possibility of seeing some new pokemon.

* * *

" _So how many Pokemon do you want to use...Uh..."_ Will started, blinking nd looking at Richie in question, being that he didn't know the other boys name. Richie smiled , a poke'ball in his own hand, " _Richie, how about a two pokemon battle? you lose when both your pokemon are unable to fight"_ Will nodded whilst taking his battle stance, his poke'ball gripped in his hand - as he went to throw it, he stumbled when a voice shouted, " _Wait a second!"_ Turning his attention to A.J who stepped up with a small smirk at Will's stumble, " _My name is A.J, ill be the referee"_ Will blinked but smiled and nodded, regaining his battle stance and throwing his poke'ball into the air, " _Lets get this show on the road!"_ He shouted as the poke'ball opened and released the white light of his first pokemon.

" _Aggron!"_ Will's first pokemon, Aggron roared as he appeared to the field, stamping his foot at first before yawning and scratching the back of his head with a lazy look in his eyes, making Richie blink and look to Will in confusion, who smiled and laughed, " _Sorry, Aggron here is quiet the **Relaxed-Type** but don't underestimate him, he loves to battle" _Will explained, making Richie nod as he threw his own poke'ball, " _Go Cruise!"_

 _"Tyranitar!"_ Richie's Tyranitar - nicknamed Cruise - roared upon release, clenching his small hands into fists as he took his battle stance, a toothy grin crossing his face and a glint in his eyes as he sore the fellow rock type Aggron in front of him. A.J nodded and raised his arms, " _The first battle will be between Will's Aggron, and Richie's Tyranitar! Battle...Begin!"_

 _"Whoa, what pokemon are they?"_ Maddison wondered aloud, pulling her pokedex out and scanning the steel pokemon:

 **Aggron, the Iron Armor Pokemon,** _ **and the evolved form of Lairon**. _

_Aggron claims a large mountain for its territory, and fiercely defends it from those who trespass._

 _"Awesome..."_ Maddison mumbled, moving the pokedex to point at Tyranitar with wide eyes:

 **Tyranitar, the Armor Pokemon.**

 _Tyranitar has a heavily armored body that can withstand powerful attacks and is able to crush a mountain with one hand._

* * *

 _"Alright, lets go Aggron! Use_ **Rock Polish!"** Will called out to his Aggron, who had stood up once Tyranitar had appeared on the field, its relaxed manor disappearing. " _Gron!"_ The steel/rock type cried as his body glowed a soft white/brown color, raising the naturally slow pokemon's speed, " _Cruise, use_ **Fire Fang** _whilst he's waiting!"_ Richie ordered, watching as Tyranitar lumbered towards Aggron as fast as he could, his jaw open with his sharp teeth surrounded with fire.

 _"You know what to do Aggron!"_ Will shouted with confidence, making Richie blink in confusion. Aggron nodded and raised his right arm, flinching ever so slightly as Cruises flame covered teeth clamped down onto his steel armored arm, _"Great Job! Quick, use_ **Metal Claw** _whilst he's close!"_ Will exclaimed with wide excited eyes. Aggrron grinned down at Cruise, who's eyes went wide at the command, crying out in pain as Aggron's left hand glowed bright silver and slashed down his body, making the Armor Pokemon stumble back.

 _"Use_ **Thunder Punch** _whilst he's down Aggron!"_ Richie cursed under his breath, " _Shit...Cruise! Dodge it and use_ **Earthquake!"** Richie called, watching as Aggron ran at Cruise with impressive speed, his fist crackling with electricity. Opening his eyes at the sound of his trainers voice, Tyranitar jumped to the side as Aggron threw his fist at him, flinching when the **Thunder Punch** grazed his arm, but quickly raised his foot and slammed it on the ground, sending a powerful **Earthquake** around the field.

Aggron stood his ground, closing his eyes and flinching in pain as the earth shook, vibrating through his body to cause damage: Will dug his feet into the ground to keep his footing, pointing towards Cruise as the shaking stopped, _"Use_ **Water Pulse!"** He ordered quickly. Aggron shook the effects of the **Earthquake** off, opening its mouth and releasing a small orb of water. Upon contact with Cruise, the **Water Pulse** exploded, sending Tyranitar skidding backwards with a cry off, " _Ranitar!"_ As the smoke cleared, Richie cursed once again when he sore the red tint in Cruises eyes, " _Crap...Confusion..."_

Cruise grabbed his head and cried out in confusion, stamping his feat around with his mouth open, shooting **Hyperbeams** at random around the field, " _Snap out of it Cruise!"_ Richie shouted desperately, watching in horror as Cruise seemed to not here him, stamping harder and sending off an **Earthquake** whilst still shooting **Hyperbeams.**

 _"Whilst he's confused, hit him with your_ **Double** **Thunder Punch** _again Aggron!"_ Will ordered as he ducked to avoid a stay **Hyperbeam.** Aggron once again ran towards Cruise, this time with both his hands crackling with electricity: Swinging his left fist, Tyranitar just skidded to the side as Aggron's fist connect with his side, crying out in a mix of confusion and pain as the second **Thunder Punch** connected with his abdominal, this time exploding on impact, " _Rawg!"_ was all that Richie heard as he shielded his eyes from the explosion, calling out to Cruise in concern, " _CRUISE!"_

The smoke quickly disappeared, revealing a knocked-out Tyranitar on his back with one of Aggron's feet on his back as it roared in victory, " _AGGRON!"_


	23. Battle Results And A Farewell

Ash watched with an impressed look on his face as Aggron knocked out Cruise, an approving nod on his face, " _Not bad - he was lucky that he got the confusion off, if not Tyranitar could have easily knocked him out"_ His words made Maddison and Jason look up at him in confusion whilst Natalie just nodded in agreement. Noticing their looks Ash indicated tot he two pokemon with his head as Richie ran over to the fainted Tyranitar, " _Richie has had Tyranitar for a lot longer than Will has had that Aggron - you can tell by looking at them, and how they act."_

 _"The way Aggron is standing on top of Tyranitar is typical for pokemon of a younger age - and the way Tyranitar isn't pushing him off is an indication that he is a lot older, because he is showing an understanding that younger pokemon that win feel the need to put on a show at the end to show their victory"_ Ash finished explaining as he watched Richie return Tyranitar after praising him. Maddison and Jason nodded in understanding whilst Natalie looked at Ash with an impressed look, " **He sure knows a lot for a 15 year old...you'd think he was 17 or 18 from the way he talks..."**

After returning Cruise, Richie stood with a smile as he backed up to his side of the field, watching as Will thanked Aggron for his work - Aggron puffing his chest up and flexing his arms at the praise, " _That Aggron of your's is strong, but lets keep going, Go Sparky!"_ Richie complemented, nodding to the Pikachu on his shoulder, getting back in his battle stance as the electric type jumped to the field, sparks crackling with electricity.

 _"Thanks Richie, ready to keep going Aggron?"_ Will thanked, looking to Aggron who had a smug look on his face as he stared down at the small rodent pokemon, " _Alright, start off with a_ **Water Pulse!"** Will ordered, the boy having high hopes to hit and get the confusion once more. _"Dodge with_ **Agility,** _then use_ **Thunderbolt!"** Richie quickly called out, watching as Aggron summoned the ball of water to his mouth, shooting at Sparky who quickly zig-zagged around the field, dodging the attack. Aggron's eyes went wide as Sparky dissapeared from in front of him, letting out, " _Gron?"_ When he heard Sparky's cheeks crackling: turning his head to see that the yellow mouse was behind him, Aggron howled in pain as Sparky hit him with a powerful **Thunderbolt,** lighting up the field.

 _"Aggron!"_ he cried as the attack finished, small electric burns now covering his steel armored body. Growling slightly with a flinch, Aggron opened one eye to see Sparky now back in front of him, a challenging look in his eyes, " _Aggron! Are you alright?"_ Will shouted as the **Thunderbolt** came to an end, sighing in relief when Aggron nodded his head in response, shaking the small sparks of electricity of his body, " _Alright! Try and use_ **Fire Punch!"** Will ordered, watching as Aggron forced himself to run towards the agile Sparky, his left fist charged and surrounded with fire.

 _" Sparky, meet it with your_ **Iron Tail!"** Richie ordered with a grin: Sparky ran forwards, jumping and spinning with his tail glowing bright silver, a small explosion happening as Aggron's fist and Sparky's tail made contact - the two pokemon pushed their attacks with as much power as they could, until both pokemon's body parts repelled each other: Sparky flying back and skidding across the ground whilst Aggron stayed in the same spot, hunched over and panting heavily as a new scorch mark covered his fist.

Just as Will was about to call out, Ash stepped onto the battle field, a stern look on his face, " _Return Aggron Will"_ Will and Aggron blinked in surprise at Ash's words: Ash turned to the purple haired trainer with the same stern look, " _Aggron isn't going to back down, his pride is to big to do so - he will keep fighting regardless of how many hits he takes: right now he is at the limit of his stamina, he needs rest"_ Aggron growled as Ash criticized him, stopping to cry his name in pain as he tried to take a step towards the boy, the burn marks on his body searing in pain.

Will blinked but nodded whilst raising the poke'ball, " _Aggron return"_ he said as he returned the injured pokemon, looking a the ball in his hand with a half smile, " _You were great out their, you take a long rest"_ He told the ball, smiling as the ball wobbled in a nodding way before placing it on his belt and reached for his second poke'ball: Ash nodded at Will and stepped back, crossing his arms as he stood next to the siting Jason and Maddison, who once again shot the boy looks of confusion with a hint of surprise.

 _"Why did you do that Ash?"_ Jason wondered cluelessly, Maddison nodding in agreement whilst looking up at the crossed armed boy: Before Ash could say anything, Natalie interrupted, standing on the opposite side of the bench to Ash, " _Because Aggron wasn't going to stop, no matter how much damage he took"_ She said plainly, sighing and going on to elaborate as the tow looked to her with confusion, " _That Aggron has a lot of pride - most pokemon of that species do - but after beating a_ _pseudo-legendary like Tyranitar, he wasn't going to get defeated by a Pikachu - But he had already taken good damage from Tyranitar's_ **Earthquake,** _the_ **Thunderbolt** _hit hard, then with the collision of the attacks, it was enough for Aggron - if Ash hadn't stepped in, Aggron would have lied saying it was okay to keep going to Will, who would have believed him and kept going, not knowing how injured Aggron really was"_ Natalie finished, looking back to the field as Maddison and Jason nodded in understanding.

Ash looked at Natalie with a smile and a nod at her words, " **She's really smart...pretty cute as well...wait what?!"** Ash thought to himself, blinking in shock and quickly turning his attention back to the field - not seeing the smirk that crossed A.J's face as a blush spread across his cheeks.

Back to the battle: Will smiled whilst holding his second poke'ball in front of him, " _Lets finish this! Go Infernape!"_ He called as he threw the poke'ball in the air, a grin spread across his face as his pokemon appeared to the field. Richie and Sparky braced themselves as the fire monkey appeared to the field, shouting its name with a slightly feminine voice, " _Infernape!"_ The female Infernape shouted, raising her fists and bouncing on the heels of her feat with a look of readiness on her face.

 _"Lets rock and roll Infernape! Use_ **Flamethrower!"** Will ordered - Infernape cried her name as she opened her mouth and shot the blazing flames towards Sparky, " _Use_ **Thunderbolt!"** Sparky jumped and let lose the electric attack, which collided with the **Flamethrower** with a small explosion, the attacks cancelling each other out. Will grinned, " _Thats one powerful Pikachu you have Richie, Infernape! Use_ **Flare Blitz!"** Richie smiled at the complement, calling out to Sparky as Will's Infernape charged at him, a mix of red and blue flames surrounding hte monkey pokemon, " _Jump and grab onto her back!_ "

Sparky jumped as Infernape charged at him, latching onto her back as the flames dies down and she looked around in confusion, " _Quick Infernape, shake him off!"_ Will cried, Infernape screeching when she sore the mouse pokemon on her back, violently shaking from side to side in an attempt to get him off, " _Hold on tight Sparky and use_ **Thunder!"** Sparky gripped Infernape's back fur tightly, cheeks sparking as he shouted, " _Pika-CHUUUUUU!"_ directly hitting Infernape with his most powerful attack. " _FERNAPE!"_ She cried as the powerful electric attack struck her directly, wincing from pain as she shook herself once more, throwing Sparky skidding across the ground, stopping the **Thunder.**

 _"Infernape!" "Sparky"_ both trainers shouted as the two pokemon stared at each other, panting heavily - the two stared off before they both grunted, Sparky falling forwards and Infernape falling backwards, swirls in both their eyes.

 _"Both pokemon are unable to continue! This battle is a draw!"_ A.J declared as Will returned his fallen pokemon and Richie scooped Sparky up in his arms, " _You alright Sparky?" "Pika..."_ Richie smiled as Sparky gave him a small thumbs up, raising his poke'ball and returning the pokemon, " _Take a good rest buddy, you can travel on my shoulder when you feel better"_ Richie stood up to see Will standing in front of him with his hand outstretched, " _That was ac close call Richie, your a strong trainer"_ Will told Richie, who smiled and took his hand as he spoke, " _It was a close call, your a powerful trainer as well Will, it was a fun battle"_

Ash looked down when he felt Maddison tug on his jacket slightly, a curious look on her face, " _How did they knock each other out so quickly?"_ She asked, watching as Ash smiled and started explaining to her, " _Both Sparky and Infernape are attacking pokemon - their not built to take very many attacks. The power of the_ **Thunder** _was easily enough to knock her out, whilst Sparky had run out of electricity - he had used a good amount against Aggron, the last electric attack just drained him"_ Ash finished, Pikachu agreeing with a, " _Pika-pikachu!"_

* * *

 _\- An hour later -_

Ash and his friends stood facing Will outside the pokemon Center: Offering Will his hand, Ash shot the boy a smile, " _Its nice to know i have a reliable friend here in Hoenn Will"_ Will smiled and took Ash's hand, the two boys sharing a firm handshake. Releasing his hand, turning and starting to walk away, Will waved goodbye to the group, " _It was great to meet you guys! I hope we meet again"_ Ash and his friends all waved to the boy as he walked away, smiles on their faces.

 _"Guess not all strangers are bad guys, right Pikachu?"_

 _"Pika!"_


	24. Alone Time

_**\- At the Snowpoint City Pokemon Center: 11:45 pm -**_

Ash quietly opened the window, eyes darting to the sleeping body of Jason as the window made a small creak sound: When the boy grumbled softly and rolled away from Ash, the boy let out a silent sigh, climbing out the window as quiet as possible, jumping down with a soft thud as his feat hit the snow covered ground. Ash turned to face the windows, holding his arms out as Pikachu jumped out after him, landing in his arms safely.

Turning away from the building, Ash trudged through the snow with Pikachu wrapped in his jack from the coldness of the night: Walking to the outskirts of the town, Ash ducked into a large cave, shaking the snow that had fallen on his head off whilst letting Pikachu jump from his jacket, " _Finaly some alone time right buddy?"_ Ash asked the yellow mouse, who gave a happy, " _Pika"_ whilst nodding. With everything that had gone on over the past couple of months, Ash hadn't had anytime to spend alone time with his pokemon - now that everyone was asleep and they were hidden away in cave, he could finally do that.

Pulling his bag of his back, Ash pulled out a small lighter as Pikachu gathered spare pieces of wood scattered around the entrance to the cave before he pilled them all together: Leaning down, Ash frowned when he sore the slightly damp pieces of wood gathered up, " _Their too damp..."_ He grumbled to himself, placing his lighter to the side as he gently pressed the middle of one of his poke'balls whilst looking at Pikachu who still stood at the mouth of the cave, " _Charizard come on out"_

 _"Rawr!"_ Charizard roared slightly, making the cave shake slightly, snow falling of the top of the entrance and landing on top of Pikachu who yelped, " _Pika!"_ popping his head of the snow pile, the yellow electric type glared at Charizard and Ash who stifled their laughs before he climbed out the snow, shaking it off and running to stand besides Ash before more snow fell on top of him.

Shaking his head in amusement, Ash looked up Charizard who as looking at Pikachu with a playful smile, " _Charizard, can you dry these pieces of wood of with your tail? There to damp to light..."_ Charizard puffed out a small amount of white smoke from his nose before nodding, swishing his tail around and setting it by the piled up pieces of wood. Ash nodded to Charizard in thanks as the wood slowly dried before slipping his bag off his back, placing it in front of him and unzipping it.

Plucking his poke'balls off his belt, Ash placed them into the bag one by one except one, keeping it in his hand as he shifted the unzipped bag to the side of him. Settling himself down into a crossed legged position, Ash looked at the poke'ball in his hand: it had a small leaf shaped sticker on the front with the letter B carved below - the stickers courtesy of Richie and the carving from Ash's switch-blade.

Pressing the center of the ball whilst holding it in front of himself, Ash watched as the poke'ball opened to reveal Bulbasaur, " _Saur?"_ Bulbasaur spoke, blinking his big red eyes whilst stretching his small limbs, " _Bulbasaur-Bulb-Bulbasaur?"_ He said in confusion, looking around the cave in confusion before his eyes landed on Ash, making the small grass type, duck his head and move his gaze to the floor: This was the first time it had just been him and Ash - with the exception of Charizard who was drying the wood whilst lying down with his eyes closed, and Pikachu who had gone back to the mouth of the cave to gather more wood to dry.

 _"Bulbasaur, look at me"_ Ash told the obviously nervous grass type, who gulped before raising its head and looked to Ash, who surprised Bulbasaur with s mile, his arms open, " _Come here"_ Bulbasaur's eyes filled with tears, as he cried a soft, " _Saur!"_ Before running and jumping into Ash's arms, crying softly into his old trainers chest as said boy wrapped his arms around Bulbasaur, small tears in his own eyes, " _I missed you so much Bulbasaur"_ Ash softly told the sobbing pokemon, who nodded faintly, cuddling in closer to the boy as his cries died down.

 _"Listen Bulbasaur,"_ At the words, Bulbasaur lifted his head to look up at the more stern looking face of his trainer, " _I understand why you betrayed me"_ Ash started with a slightly bitter tone - Bulbasaur himself flinching from the words, " _I know that pokemon mate forever, and the possibility of never seeing your children must have been horrible - it must have been so hard for you to have to leave me...it was hard on me to see you g-go,"_ Ash spoke, his voice breaking slightly, making him stop to cough and gather his emotions as Bulbasaur continued to watch his trainer, a look of guilt written on his face, _"I'm sorry about what May did - and i'm sorry i have to do this, but i can't trust you, not yet at least"_ He continued, ignoring the pain in his heart as he sore one of his oldest pokemon's eyes flash with hurt and sadness, " _I want to trust you, i really do - and i understood you left because you didn't have a choice, but like with the other's who came back, i need time, and you - like them - have to prove to me that your loyal and won't leave me again"_ Ash finished, making Bulbasaur nod sadly in understanding.

Ash smiled and patted Bulbasaur's head gently before placing him on the ground, " _Go lay down, its late and i need to do a few things..."_ Ash instructed as he pulled out his pokedex: Bulbasaur nodded as he walked over to a a small tuff of grass near the back of the cave and settled down, resting his head on his head and closing his eyes as Ash pointed the pokedex at him, the robotic voice filling the silent cave:

 **Bulbasaur, the Seed Pokemon**

 _At birth, a strange seed was planted which grew into the bulb that can be seen on its back: the bulb is used to absorb nutrients from the sun - as it does this the bubl will eventually blossom._

 _This Bulbasaur knows the following attacks:_

 ** _Vine Whip, Leech Seed, Sleep Powder and Solarbeam_**

Ash nodded to himself as he processed the information, " _Looks like May didn't train you very much, we have got a lot of attacks and tactics to work on..."_ Ash mumbled to himself, making a not to himself on the moves that Bulbasaur could learn - **Synthesis, Seed Bomb, Sludge Bomb, Energy Ball, Magical Lead, Giga Drain** and **Grass Whistle** were the one's Ash was most interest in teaching to the resting pokemon.

* * *

Thinking to himself for a second, Ash pointed the pokedex at Pikachu as he ran back into the cave, a piece of wood clamped between his teeth:

 **Pikachu, the Mouse Pokemon and the evolved form of Pichu,**

 _Whenever Pikachu comes across something new, it blasts it with a jolt of electricity. If you come across a blackened berry, it's evidence that this Pokémon mistook the intensity of its charge_

 _This Pikachu knows the following attacks:_

 ** _Thunderbolt, Quick Attack, Iron Tail, Electro Ball, Double Team, Agility, Thunder Punch and Volt Tackle_**.

Ash nodded, impressed at how well Pikachu had come along over their time together: quickly scrolling through the pokedex screen, Ash thought aloud to himself, " _Hmm..._ **Discharge** and **Spark** _look like easy moves to learn...maybe even **Brick Break** and **Light Screen**..." _ He pondered, impressed even more at the potential moves Pikachu could learn: Ash continued this process, scanning Charizard enxt before scanning each poke'ball with the pokedex, pulling out a notepad and pen to take ntoes on what attacks he wanted to work on. After scanning the last poke'ball, Ash put his pokedex back into his pocket, closing the note pad and placing it and the pen back into his bag, afterwards picking a poke'ball up and checking the sticker and carved letter: A tear dropped shaped stick sat above the carved letter B.

Releasing his pokemon, Ash watched as Buizel appeared in a flash of white light, crying a short, " _Bui!"_ Whilst crossing his arms and looking around the cave, spotting Ash and doing the same as Bulbasaur did: cast his gaze downwards in shame and guilt. Ash smiled faintly whilst thinking, " **I wonder if every pokemon i get back is going to react this way..."** Coughing to get the water types attention, Ash scooted over and patted his side, indicating for Buizel to sit next to him.

Buizel looked hesitant at first but complied, walking over and sitting down next to Ash - watching as Ash picked up his previously discarded lighter and lit the now dried wood. Reaching a hand over to pat Charizard, Ash smiled at the fire type, " _Thanks pal, could you move over a bit please? i got some other pokemon i need to talk to after Buizel"_ He asked the lizard pokemon, who grunted in annoyance but nodded, standing up and moving slightly deeper into the cave, proceeding to lie down and lcose his eyes once more as Ash thanked him, a promise of a treat later making the fire type grin to himself.

Looking back down at Buizel, Ash sighed when he sore the sad and guilty look in the weasel pokemon's eyes as they starred at the fire, " _Buizel, i need you to look at me so you understand what i am about to say"_ Ash said sternly, watching as Buizel slowly lifted his eyes to look at Ash, " _I know you were forced to leave me - the same way Croconaw and Kingler were, by force and being beaten up, right?"_ Buizel flinched but nodded as the memory flood back to him - that moment had not only physically hurt him, but had hurt his pride and battle spirit: which hadn't been the same since he Ash left.

Ash sighed and placed a hand on Buizel's head, making him look at Ash in curiosity, " _Just like i said to Bulbasaur, Croconaw and Kingler, i don't trust you, not yet: you need to earn my trust back, and prove your loyalty - that you wont leave me again - only than will I battle with you"_ Ash told Buizel, who nodded in understanding, a look of relief crossing his face: he was just happy that Ash was giving another chance!

After telling Buizel to go relax in the cave and watching the water type nod and do as instructed, Ash reached for a third poke'ball: this one had a small fire sticker aboe the letter E. sighing at his latest reunited pokemon, ash released his Emboar, who shook his head once out the poke'ball, turning to Ash with a big grin, lumbering towards him for a hug with his large arms wide open. Just before he could be hugged, Ash held a hand up to stop the excited fire type - who indeed stopped, looking at Ash with confusion: Shaking his head, Ash stood up so he could look Emboar in the eyes, " _I'm sorry Emboar, but i won't be hugging you for sometime,"_ Ash started, making the fire type drop his arms with a shocked look.

 _"_ _You hugged me back at the lab before i could stop and explain how things work now, but now i can: Its like this Emboar, jsut like the others i understand that you were force to leave me, and i'm sorry for that and this - but regardless it hurt me deeply when you all left, even if i now know it wasn't by choice: it still hurts. So i need you to give me time to forgive you - during that time i need you to work hard to regain my trust: and prove to me that you are loyal to me and won't leave ever again, okay?"_ Ash finished explaining, watching the emotions cycle through his pokemon's eyes before it landed on understanding. Emboar nodded , placing one of his large hands onto Ash's shoulder, shooting him one last apologetic smile before turning and walking over to the mouth of the cave, sitting and looking out of the snow in deep thought.

* * *

As Emboar thought to himself about how he could start to earn his master's trust back, Ash reached for Croconaw's and Kingler's poke'balls, releasing them and watching as they stretched, turning to face Ash, " _I finished explaining to the other's my process, now i want to talk to you two about something important"_ Ash told the two pokemon, both of which looked at each other nervously as Ash sat back down in his cross-legged position.

 _"Over the past month, you guys have been working really hard for me: you've pushed yourself to the limit and further, trying to earn my respect and trust back, and i'm here to tell you..."_ Ash stopped for a brief second, looking over each of the pokemon, who both wore nervous looks, " _Its worked, I trust you guys more now, not 100% but enough that i feel like you both deserve a hug for how hard you are trying to prove yourselves to me"_ Ash finished, yelping a little as the two water pokemon cried their names out in joy, Croconaw jumping Ash and clinging to his shirt, happy tears streaming down his cheeks whilst Kingler slowly made his way over to Ash, moving his large claw to hug the boy as best as the crab like pokemon could.

Smiling after his initial shock, Ash wrapped one arm around Croconaw whilst moving his other handing around Kingler's head with, " _You guys still have a bit to go, but i'm slowly trusting you more and more"_ The pokemon nodded after a few minutes, Croconaw letting for of ash and stepping back to wipe his snout whilst Kingler moves his claw back, smiling happily. Like the other's Ash sent the two pokemon to rest whilst he released his other pokemon, each of them following suit - finding a comfortable place to lay down. Ash stood up and stopped Pidgeot, making her look to him as Ash smiled, " _I just need to take your bandages off, you should be all healed up now"_ Pidgeot smield as Ash proceeded to take the bandages off, puffing her chest out as proof she was healed which made Ash laugh.

Pidgeot followed the other pokemon to find herself a comfortable spot as Ash pulled out his old sleeping bag, laying it against a rock and lying down as Pikachu walked up to him and climbed on his chest before curling up and closing his eyes. Ash smiled at Pikachu, taking one final look around at his pokemon before tipping his hat down and closing his own eyes.

His Pokemon. His friends. His family: how he had missed spending time with them by himself.


	25. A Storm Is Coming

_**\- Outside the Snowpoint City Pokemon Center: 9:30 -**_

Maddison paced around the front of the pokemon center worriedly: Ash had disappeared at some point in the note and left a letter saying he would be back for 9. " **Well its 9:30! Where is he?!"** Maddison thought as A.J and Richie both looked at their watches with worry: Jason was fighting where he stood in worry whilst Natalie chewed on her gum, a look of non-worry on her face - which irritated Maddison to no end, enough to make her stop and glare at the girl, " _How are you not worried?! Ash disappeared without a word and now he's late!"_

Looking at Maddison as she popped the bubble she made with her gum, Natalie shrugged whilst taking the gum out and throwing in the trash, " _Because its Ash: Ash isn't stupid - he said in the note he was just going to spend time with his pokemon - he probably just lost track of time"_ She explained, growing slightly unnerved when Maddison and the others starred at her, " _What?_

After starring for a few seconds, Richie and A.J looked to each other with a small smirk before looking back at Natalie, " _I've been meaning to ask you this...but do you have a crush on Ash Natalie?"_ Natalie's eyes wide in surprise, her cheeks going a bright red at A.J's question, " _W-W-W-What?! T-That's ridiculous! He's just a friend! I don't think he's cute or brave or any-shit..."_ She cursed at her words, covering her mouth as A.J and Richie smiled like Cheshire cats, whilst Jason stared at his childhood friend in shock and Maddison gave a small smile.

" _Aha, I new it!_ A.J cheered, looking at Jason with his hand outstretched, " _I was right, pay up"_ Natalie watched in shock as Jason grumbled, placing 50 bucks into A.J's hand, " _You guys made a bet on that?!"_ Natalie asked angrily, the blush on her face slowly dying down: A.J and Jason nodded as A.J pocketed the money, " _Yeah, I knew I was right!"_

 _"Right about what?"_ The sound of Ash's voice made the group all turn to see Ash stood in front of them with Pikachu sat on his head - both were looking at the group in curiosity, " _I knew that Natalie was c-mmph!"_ A.J started, only to be stopped by Natalie slapping her hand over his mouth, glaring at him as hot as her blush was flaring, " _HE WAS RIGHT THAT I WAS CORRECT THAT YOU WERE JUST RUNNING A LITTLE LATE!"_ Natalie shouted, making Richie snicker and Maddison giggle whilst Ash and Pikachu shared a confused look.

Shrugging at each other, Ash and Pikachu turned back to face the group, " _Well you were right, I kinda lost track of time - but anyway, are you guys ready to go?"_ Ash explained, watching as Maddison, Richie, Jason and Natalie all nodded whilst A.J wiped his mouth, mumbling a soft, " _Yeah"_

 _"Then lets get a move on"_

* * *

Using one arm to shield his eyes Ash held Pikachu to his chest - he had wrapped him up once again in his jacket to keep him safe from the harsh weather: Ash could deal with, after a year on a snowy mountain he was use to it - But his other pokemon had all stayed in the safety of their cave home. Stopping to look back at the other's, Ash's brow dipped in concern when he could only just about see them, " _We need to find somewhere to stop until the storm stops!"_ Ash heard Richie shout through the storm, making Ash look around swiftly before pointing to his side, " _There's a cave over their! Everyone hold hands so you don't get lost!"_ Ash shouted, reaching back and grabbing Jason's hand before walking towards the cave.

Stumbling into the cave, the group all sighed in relief, shaking the snow of their clothes, " _Man, that storm came out from no-were!"_ Maddison exclaimed as she brushed the snow out of her hair. Everyone nodded in agreement whilst looking around the cave, " _Guess we can stay in here till the storm calms down..."_ Jason spoke up, walking over to a small log and sitting down on it, everyone following suit.

Everything was quiet for a few seconds until Natalie moved a hand to her neck, eyes widening and jumping to her feat, " _ITS GONE!"_ She shouted, quickly running and searching the floor, " _WHERE IS IT?! I CAN'T FIND IT!_ She continued when she couldn't find it, casting her eyes to the caves entrance and running over to it: stopping when Ash jumped up and ran to block her from leaving, " _MOVE ASH! I AVE TO FIND IT!"_

Grabbing onto her arms, Ash looked her in the eyes, " _Deep breathes Natalie, in and out, I need you to calm down and tell me what's gone"_ Ash calmly told her, guiding through the breathing technique, watching as her frantic face changed to that of sadness, her eyes filling with tears, " _M-M-MY necklace...I-I-its gone...I-its all I have left of my mother, I-I need to find it!"_ She cried out, her tears threatening to spill over her cheeks.

Ash shook his head and dragged the older girl over to the log Maddison was sat on and sat her down next to her, " _You can't go out their, its too dangerous!"_ Finally letting a single tear fall down her cheek, Natalie went to object but was stunned when Ash stood up and straightened his hat, " _You guys stay here, you to Pikachu, i'll go and find it, what does it look like?"_ Natalie stared at her crush with a stunned look, snapping out of it and telling him what her necklace looked like, " _I-its shaped like an angle...it has my mom's name on the back, Karen..."_ Ash nodded, turning to face the mouth of the entrance and began to walk.

 _"You can't go out their!"_ Both A.J and Richie shouted as they jumped to their feet, making Ash turn to them with a look that made the two boys sit back down, " _I can and I will, this is important to Natalie, I have to/ and will find it"_ Ash stated, turning once again and walking out the cave, his figure quickly disappearing into the storm.

* * *

Bracing himself against the coldness of the storm, Ash trudged through the deep snow, his mouth covered by his jacket as he looked for Natalie's necklace, " _Dammit, where is it...?"_ he whispered to himself, looking around himself, but only seeing the white of the snow and the storm, " _I need to find it...for Natalie..."_ He continued to whisper as his movement started to slow down - the storm was getting worse, but Ash didn't care, continuing to push his feet through the thickening snow.

 **\- Back In the Cave -**

Pikachu stood at the entrance of the cave starring out at the snow with worry, his eyes darting every which way as he searched for any sign of his trainer. Maddison sat on a log near the entrance, grasping Natalie's hand who, along side Maddison, were also starring out of the cave with worry. Jason sat on his own log, rubbing his hands together, moving to zip his jacket up before shoving his hands in his pocket as he shivered from the cold, " _Its so cold..."_

A,J nodded in agreement, thinking and snapping his fingers, making Jason and Richie - who was sat next to him - looked at him as he called Alakazam out, ordering to psychically break one of the logs apart and bundle them all together. Turning to Richie, who stared at A.J with confusion, A.J indicated to Sparky who sat in the brown-haired boy lap, also shivering, " _Can you get Sparky to use_ **Thunderbolt** _on these pieces of wood? The friction should be enough to make a fire!"_ Richie nodded, looking at Sparky who climbed out his lap, shooting his attack at the ripped up pieces of wood.

Almost instantly the fire roared to life, filling the dark cave with new light and heat: Jason and Richie quickly scrambled over to the roaring flames, sighing in relief as the heat washed over their bodies. Rubbing his own hands near the fire, A.J looked to Maddison and Natalie, " _Guys, there's a fire, come and get warm"_ The two girls didn't respond, making A.J frown but eave the two alone - who continued to stare out at the unchanging whiteness of the snow storm.

 **\- With Ash -**

Ash shook violently as his walking slowed down even more - this time not from the force of the storm. Finally coming to a stop, Ash's entire body shivered and his teeth chattered against each other, " **I can't feel my fingers"** Ash though to himself, curling his hands only to feel a numbing sensation. Shaking his head and deciding to ignore the feeling, Ash forced himself to take a few more steps before his knees buckled, forcing Ash to his knees as his entire upper body shook even harder, his vision beginning to blur, " _No...I can't give up..."_ He whimpered out, now forcing himself to crawl through the snow, " _I-I-Is that...?"_ Ash asked weakly as he felt a piece of metal hit his finger tips. Lifting the object up, Ash smiled weakly in victory when he made out the outline of an angle, " _I-I found it..."_ He whispered before he fell forwards, losing consciousness with the necklace gripped in his hand.

 _"ASH!"_

 _"PIKAPII!"_


	26. Out Of The Storm

Ash slowly blinked his eyes open, his vision still a little blurry as he searched his surroundings with his eyes: Slowly the area came into focus - he was back in the cave, Richie and A.J were of to the side looking to play a game of cards. Jason sat sat close to the two boys watching them play whilst Maddison and Natalie sat close to Ash, "W-What happened?" Ash weakly asked, watching as everyone turned to Ash with relieved eyes, "Ash!"

Ash smiled slightly, going to say something but was interrupted by a happy cry of, "PIKAPII!" blinking when his vision went completley yellow. Ash smiled when he realized it was Pikachu - reaching his arms up to pull the yellow mouse off his face and hug him, "Nice to see you as well Pikachu..." Pikachu just smiled in relief and happiness, hugging his trainers stomach for a few seconds before jumping off and letting the boy slowly sit up with Maddison's and Natalie's help, "What happened? H-how did i get here?"

"You were gone for a long time, so me and Pikachu went out to find you - we know you said not to but we got worried," Maddison started to explain as she helped Ash sit up, reaching to grab a blanket that Natalie had took out and giving it to the still shivering boy, "We couldn't find you at first, but then we heard a falling sound - and when we looked we sore you collapsed on the floor...I called out Maya and she helped me and Pikachu to get you back to the cave" Maddison finished, smiling whilst petting Maya's poke'ball gently, feeling thee poke'ball wiggle slightly in response.

Taking the blanket and draping it over his slightly shaking knees, Ash's eyes widened at her words, frantically reaching into his pockets before a look of relief crossed his face, looking to Natalie as he pulled out the necklace - watching as her face turned to shock, "Before i collapsed...i-i found it...h-here..." Ash told the shocked girl gently, taking her hand and placing the necklace into it.

Natalie looked at the necklace in shock, "M-My necklace..." She whispered before throwing her arms around the slightly shivering boy, small tears gathering in her eyes as she hugged Ash, "Thank you so much Ash! You have no idea how much this means to me!" Ash smiled, wrapping his arms around Natalie's back, hugging her back as his shivering started to slow down, "It's okay..." He whispered gently, not noticing the hug had lasted longer than the normal "friend's thanking" hug usually did. Natalie realized however, slowly pulling herself back with a small blush on her cheeks as small tears fell down her cheeks, "S-sorry..."

Ash just smiled, lifting the blanket up to gently wipe her tears away, "Don't apologize, i'm just glad you have your necklace back..." Ash replied, oblivious to the real reason she apologized. Natalie smiled with a small laugh at the obliviousness of the boy in front of her, leaning back fully and reaching to place the necklace round her neck, "Me to, thank you again...i can never repay you for doing this..." Natalie played along, placing a hand on the angle once it was placed round her neck, "Don't worry about that, you don't have to repay me, that's what...Friends do for each other" Ash spoke with the slightest bit of hesitation, but smiled to reassure the other who looked at Ash with confusion.

AJ, Richie and Jason all looked at each other, sharing a laugh as Richie shook his head with an amused smile, "Ash can be so dense sometimes..." His words made the other boys nod whilst laughing harder - Maddison giggle whilst Natalie blushed harder with her own small giggle: Ash watched them all with a confused look on his face - reminding AJ and Richie of the boy they met all those years ago.

\- 2 hours later -

Ash sighed and stretched his arms as he walked out the cave - the storm had finally calmed down enough for the group to continue their trek. Turning to look back at the other's as he started walking through the snow once more, Ash smiled when he sore them all grumbling to themselves about the snow, "Come on guys, its not much farther until were out the snow, trust me, I've traveled through this route before" Ash reassured them, watching as they all grumbled once more before nodding and following the raven-haired boy as he lead them through the snow.

Both Ash and Pikachu laughed slightly at the other's turning to look ahead as Ash trudged through the deep snow, Pikachu resuming his place on the boys shoulder: Stopping whilst Maddison placed a hand on his shoulder whilst pointing in front of him, "Is that a pokemon?" what is it?" Ash looked back t her before following her h=er pointing finger, squinting his eyes as a small figure came into view.

As the small figure came into view, Ash instantly recognized the the dark blue bipedal pokemon, "Its a Sneasle, it looks like it wants to fight?" Ash confirmed, watching as the Sneasle ground its claws toether before pointing at Maddison, giving the group a "Come get me gesture" before getting into a battle stance, "Why don't you battle it Maddison?" Ash suggested, making Maddison blink at his words, "M-Me?" Ash nodded and stepped to the side so Maddison was facing the battle ready pokemon.

With an unsure look on her face, Maddison nodded and plucked a poke'ball from her waist, throwing it into the air, " _Nagini, lets go!_ " She called, calling her faithful Servine out, who cried her name, quickly getting into a battle stance once she sore Sneasle, " _Servine!"_ She cried loudly, vines appearing from the spots on her shoulder as she waited for Maddison to order an attack.

 _"Use_ **Energy Ball** _Nagini!"_ Maddison finally ordered - Nagini jumped and shot the ball of green energy at the wild Sneasle soon after the she heard the command, the green sphere hurdling towards the Ice/Dark type who smirked, its left claw glowing white as it easily slashed at the **Energy Ball,** destroying it before the Sneasle jumped, shooting an **Ice Beam** towards Nagini, " _Quick, use your vines to dodge and use_ **Iron Tail!"** Maddison shouted, her hands balled up into fists as she watched the two pokemon fight.

Nagini pushed herself up, the **Ice Beam** narrowly missing her as her tail glowed, taking on a steel like appearance before she swung it at Sneasle, sending the pokemon flying backwards with a shout of, " _Sal!"_ as the super effective attack hit it. Flipping its body around, Sneasle skidded back though the snow, a grin on its face as it ran towards Nagini, its claws glowing a shadowy purple.

 _"Dodge Nagini! Then use_ **Return!"** Nagini quickly evaded the Sneasle's claws, charging and slamming into the pokemon whilst surrounding herself with a white glow. Sneasle flew backwards onto its back as the powerful **Return** hit it. Slowly climbing to its feet, Sneasle shouted its name running forwards once again with its arms crossed, glowing a faint green/yellow color.

" _Deflect that_ **X-Scissor** _with your_ **Iron Tail!"** Maddison called as she watched Sneasle run at Nagini with the attack that she had seen Maya use many times: Swinging her steel clad tail to meet the **X-Scissor,** Nagini and the Sneasle both ground their teeth as the two struggled to overpower the other. This lasted for a few seconds before Nagini pushed one final time, Sneasle's arms falling down as the grass types **Iron Tail** made contact with its chest.

Cheering as the Sneasle flew back, struggling to push itself to its feet, Maddison stopped, reaching for an empty poke'ball on her belt and throwing it at the injured pokemon, " _Go Poke'ball!"_ She exclaimed as the ball left her hand, hitting Sneasle on the head and sucking it inside and landing on the snow. The poke'ball wobbled backwards and forwards, the red light in the middle flashing violently before finally stopping - the Sneasle was caught!

 _"Alright we got it! Great job Nagini!"_ Maddison cheered once more, running over to her pokemon and picking her up in a hug, " _Vine!"_ Nagini replied, a proud look on her face as Maddison hugged her before raising her poke'ball, " _Return"_ Smiling at Nagini as she returned to her poke'ball, Maddison placed the poke'ball away before wlaking over and picking the freshly caught Sneasle's poke'ball of the ground, holding it up in the air and proclaiming, " _I caught a Sneasle!"_

Maddison turned when she heard a chuckle, looking to see Ash and the others smiling at her, " _Great job Maddison, that was a good catch!"_ Natalie complemented the girl, happy to know someone else had a member of the Weavile line, _"Even though your Servine had a disadvantage, she still did it!"_ Maddison nodded whilst placing the poke'ball with her new pokemon onto her belt, " _Thanks...Zorra is the first pokemon i've caught since Maya"_

Smiling at the looks of confusion at the name, Maddison shrugged and indicated to the poke'ball, " _Sneasle, her name is Zorra - Zorra was an infamous bandit, and the she looks a little like a bandit to me..."_ She explained, thinking and pulling her own pokedex out, scanning the newly caught Zorra's poke'ball with it:

 **Sneasle, the Sharp Claw Pokemon,**

 _A smart and sneaky pokemon. A pair may work together to steal Eggs by having one lure the parents away._

 _Sneasle knows the following Attacks:_

 _**Slash, Ice Beam, Shadow Claw and X-Scissor**_

Ash nodded, an impressed look at the different moves the female Sneasle knew - but something didn't sit right with him as the pokedex listed of the attacks, " **Ice Beam, Shadow Claw** _and_ **X-Scissor** _can't be learn't naturally...maybe this Sneasle had a trainer once..."_ Ash pondered out loud, making Maddison look at the boy with a surprised look, " _You think so? Maybe that would explain why she wanted to fight so bad - maybe she doesn't like trainers that much and tries to fight them"_ Richie spoke up, a hand on his chin as he rubbed it in thought.

 _"Possibly"_ Ash answered, re-adjusting his hat before looking ahead once more, " _Lets keep going - the storm might pick back up if with take to long to get out the route"_ The other's all nodded and resumed following Ash as he lead them through the snowy area.

* * *

Breathing a sigh of relief as Mount Cornet came into view, Ash turned back to the other's, smiling slightly at the tired looks on their faces, " _I can see Mount Cornet, that mans were nearly at the end of the route, just a little farther and we will be out of the snow"_ Looks of relief spread through the group at Ash's words, continuing to follow the boy as he walked towards the mountain, until they themselves could see it, " _I see the mountain as well!"_ Jason shouted, pointing at the mountain as they walked, a look of relief and joy in his eyes.

Ash and the other's nodded at the boys shout as they advanced closer and closer to the mountain - until finally they came an entrance to said mountain. releasing a breath he didn't know he was holding, Ash looked back to talk to the group, only to blink when they weren't behind him anymore. " _Come on Ash!"_ Turning to face the voice, Ash laughed when he realised the other's had ran ahead of him as soon as they sore the mountain entrance: gripping his hat with one hand, Ash ran after the group, Pikachu laughing along with his trainer and clinging onto his shoulder as he ran, " _I'm coming! Don't go without me!"_

* * *

 **Just going to answer a few questions here!**

 **1)** _Wouldn't also teaching Bulbasaur moves like Petal Dance, Sunny Day, Toxic, and Power Whip also be recommended, as Power Whip i an upgraded Vine Whip, Petal Dance could be used like a countershield, Sunny Day for SolarBeam, and Toxic for coverage_ **\- That is a very good point, thank you for pointing that out, i will try and add the countershield thing in later on, as for some of the moves - I wanted Ash to start with easier moves at first since Bulbasaur only knows the basic 4 moves, and learning more than 5 moves is difficult at first: As Bulbasaur learns more attacks, Ash will teach him stronger and more difficult attacks.**

 **2)** _Is this Will connected to the Elite Four/Champions? The hair color and name sounds too similar!_ **\- I didn't notice until you pointed it out, but to answer - no he isn't - He is an OC i was sent by** **GA-Pokemon-Fan.**

 **3)** what happened to misty?want her pay for her cruelty **\- She will pay for her cruelty, just later on when Ash has gathered more evidence on the others**

 **4)** He got Emboar back why not give him Snivy and Dewott back? **\- He still might, i'm still deciding which pokemon will side with Ash**

 **5) This one is regards to a message i got about "** _if Ash was going to catch legionaries"_ \- **He may or may not, i fined that twist quiet common in these kinds of stories, but if you guys would like to see Ash catch a legendary, let me know who you want him to catch.**

 **Any more questions, message me or ask in the reviews and i will answer when i get the chance:**

 **Also! Are their any side characters, or any of Ash's rivals you would like to see make an appearance?**

 **As well, are their any pokemon you would like A.J Richie, Jason, Maddison, Natalie or Ash to CATCH? Not return to Ash, but for him to genuinly catch from the wild**


	27. Legendary Encounters

Walking out of Mount Cornet, Ash had to shield his eyes when the brightness of the sun washed over him and the others, who groaned in a combination of happiness but pain, " _Sunlight! I nearly forgot how warm it is!"_ Ash rolled his eyes at Natalie's over the top words, slowly lowering his arm as his eyes adjusted to his surroundings: Looking around, Ash observed the area closely - there area was mountainous, with a small rive and waterfall that Ash could here in the distances, _"Hmmm...i think we are near Hearthome city"_ Ash informed the other's who nodded stupidly, making Ash roll his eyes, " _Sorry, i forgot you guys haven't been to Sinnoh before - Hearthome is basically the biggest city in Sinnoh, there's a gym and a contest hall"_

 _"Contest Hall?"_ Maddison asked questionably, having never heard of a pokemon contest before, " _Yeah, its a place where a thing called Pokemon Contests are held - the aim is to make your pokemon look pretty, and make cool looking scenes with your pokemon, not really my thing though...you want to check it out?"_ Ash asked when he saw Maddison's eyes light up as he explained the concept of contests to her, " _Yeah!"_ She shouted excitedly, making Ash smile and nod, " _Okay, we need to go their anyway - the two girls i'm looking for are all about contests: even if their not there, someone else might know"_

 _"There's a small town called_ _Emeragrove Town not to far from here, we should get their by nightfall then we can go to Hearthome tomorrow, sound alright to everyone?"_ Ash asked the group, who all nodded in agreement, " _First we should take a small break, it took us ages to get through that mountain, come on, there is a small river not far from here where we can rest up for a bit"_ With that said, Ash beckoned the others to follow, walking towards the sound of rushing water - the other's groaned at the idea of more walking but followed Ash regardless, grumbling to themselves - except Natalie, who along with Pikachu and Ash chuckled at the group.

After walking for a few minutes, Ash pointed over to a small clearing, the edge of the river in the center, " _Told you it wasn't far,"_ the other's glared at Ash's playful tone, making Ash grin in a way that reminded A.J and Richie of the old Ash as he turned and walked over to the river, scooping up some of the water in his hands and taking a drink. Noticing the grossed out looks he got, Ash rolled his eyes and sighed, " _This river's water is clean, trust me"_ The other's look suspicious but trusted Ash, walking over to the rive, setting their bags down and reaching down to get a drink as well.

 _"Chosen one"_

Ash and the others all jumped up: Richie and A.J looked around with startled faces, whilst Jason looked around in confusion, Maddison jumped and clung to Ash's arm in fright whilst Natalie look around in a mix of suspicion and fear. Ash just stood there almost paralyzed, " **Chosen one?"** He thought to himself, having not been called that in a long time - Sensing a presence behind him, Ash turned his head and was surprised at what he, or more importantly WHO he sore standing behind him.

It wasn't just one presence that Ash had felt: if fact it had been three, all standing side by side as they watched Ash and his friends stare at them: in the center was a hooded, primarily grey and purple colored pokemon. Ash frowned when he couldn't make out the pokemon's face, but raised a brow when the figure lifted its head to reveal powerful looking purple eyes, " _Mewtwo...why are you here?"_ Ash said after staring at the figure for a few seconds, watching as the pokemon, Mewtwo, gave a soft, " _Hmmm"_ before closing his eyes and removing his hood - revealing his feline like face.

 _"Good to see that you remember me after all this time"_ Mewtwo spoke, making Ash's friends eyes widen, " _D-D-Did that pokemon just talk?!"_ A.J shouted, a look of shock and fear on his face - Ash shook his head and turned to A.J, " _No - he is using telepathy - just like Alakazam does"_ Ash explained, making A.J nod faintly in response, still keeping a fearful look on his face: which Ash ignored for the time being to turn back to Mewtwo.

 _"I hate to repeat myself; But why are you here?"_ Ash asked once again, watching as Mewtwo looked at Ash before looking to the two pokemon on either-side of him - Ash followed his lead and looked at the two pokemon as well: To Mewtwo's left side floated a pink feline like creature that resembled Mewtwo - but seemingly less developed with a long pink tail, small ears and large blue eyes, " _Mew"_ The pink pokemon, Mew, spoke cutely, floating over to Ash, taking his hat off his head and placing it on her own head before floating over to Mewtwo's side once more, making Ash shout, " _Hey"_ in response - to which Mew just grinned and giggled playfully.

Shaking his head as his hat reappeared on his head, Ash looked to Mewtwo's right to see, yet again another floating pokemon: this one looked very little like the previous two - with a blue, cone shaped head, elf like ears and two long tails with red like gems on the end of each one: a similar red stone sat in the center of the pokemon's forehead, Ash noticed as the pokemon looked to him and smiled, " _Azelf"_ He stated simply, floating up to Ash who smiled as he recognized the pokemon, " _Its been a long time Azelf..."_

Azelf nodded before floating back to Mewtwo's side, waiting for the larger pokemon to talk. Mewtwo nodded at the two before looking back to Ash with a straight face, " _We have been searching for you, Chosen one"_ Ash frowned at his words, a look of concern on his face, " _Why? Is the world in danger again?"_ Ash asked in worry, sighing in relief when Mew and Azelf laughed at his words - reassuring him that the "world ending" scenario wasn't why they were here.

 _"No, we have been searching for you because we wish to become your pokemon"_ A.J, Richie, Maddison, Jason and Natalie - who Ash had almost forgotton were behined him - all gasped in shock whislt Ash himself had a slook of surprise on his face, " _You want to join me? why? Azelf, aren't you need at the lake to protect the other pokemon? and Mew, shouldn't you be at the Tree Of Beginning - won't it die if your not their?"_

Mewtwo shook his head, making the raven-haired boy and Pikachu look at him, " _Fear not chosen one, the Tree Of Beginning is safe, Mew has put up a shield around the heart of the tree so only those who defeat her can reach it - Azelf is no longer needed at the lake, as its now being protected properly by others"_ Mewtwo explained, making Ash nod in understanding before looking at Mewtwo, " _What about you? i though you hated all humans"_

Mewtwo nodded at Ash's words before explaining, " _Ever since our last encounter on New Moon Island, i have been searching the world for my purpose, going from region to region trying to see where i fit in in this world"_ The cat like pokemon started, looking up to the sky as he spoke, closing his eyes as he continued to talk, " _Day and night i would see humans and pokemon battling alongside each other - but the pokemon in question were happy, and the humans where kind to the pokemon that they fought with - i didn't understand"_

 _"Then i remember how you saved me from Giovanni, and how you showed kindness and love to all your pokemon - and i knew my purpose was to find you so you could train me, and teach me the goodness of humanity: the goodness that i wish to know off but was never shown"_ Mewtwo finished, opening his eye and turning back to face Ash, " _That is why i have searched for many moons to find you, along the way i met with these two - who upon hearing that it was you i was searching for asked to accompany me, as they wished for you to train them as well"_

 _"Mew told me that ever since you saved the Tree Of Beginning, she has wanted you to be her trainer - but she knew she couldn't leave the Tree without protection. When i arrived she had just finished producing the new shield around the heart, and was planning to search for you herself"_ Mewtwo explained, making Ash turn to look at Mew who giggled with a small blush, floating over to Ash's unoccupied shoulder and settling down. Indicating to Azelf, Mewtwo continued, " _Azelf himself was in a similar predicament: he wanted to travel with you and see the world he couldn't see from within his cave - and once the lake area was safe and protected he was able to leave with me and Mew to search for you"_

 _"what do you say Chosen One, will you train Mew? Allow Azelf to travel and explore the world: and will you help me see the good side to humanity?_ Mewtwo finished, holding one of his three-fingered hands out to Ash, patiently waiting for the boys response. Ash looked down at the hand before looking to Mew and Azelf, a playful smile on his:

 _"On one condition: call me Ash"_


	28. The Power Within

Ash looked at the three poke'balls that held the three psychic legendries, " _I can't believe such rare and powerful pokemon allowed themselves to be caught_ " Jason said from behind Ash, a look of awe still on his face, " _But what was the pokemon that was talking? I've never seen a pokemon like that - or seen it in any books or TV shows..."_ Richie wondered, the rest of the group nodding and looking to Ash, hoping for an answer.

Placing the three new poke'balls into his bag, Ash continued to walk towards the town whilst explaining, the others following closely behind and hanging on every word, " _His name is Mewtwo - he's a clone made by a horrible bunch of crooks called Team Rocket: there boss, Giovanni, created him as an enhanced cone of Mew with the intent of using Mewtwo as a weapon to take over the world"_

Shaking his head in disgust, Ash continued his story, " _Mewtwo figured out his plan and escaped to an island where he lived with other pokemon that had been cloned for the same reason"_ Ash explained - not knowing he was wrong since Mewtwo had wiped his memory the first time they met, " _Mewtwo thought him and his fellow clones were safe, but Giovanni found them and attacked, swearing to capture Mewtwo and use him to take over the world - I was passing through on my way to my next gym battle when it all happened - luckily Mewtwo got away, even managing to wipe Giovanni's memory so he wouldn't search for him anymore. Now free, Mewtwo and his clones left the island, now able to live in the world with no fear"_

* * *

Mewtwo looked at Ash as he sat on his bed the same way he did every night - legs swung over the side, hands clasped and his hat tipped backwards: but that wasn't what Mewtwo was concerned about - it was the immense amount of pain and hurt he could sense in not only the boys heart, but it was attached to his soul in a way that Mewtwo believed would stay with the raven haired boy his whole life.

" _Ash"_ Mewtwo spoke to the boy, remembering the boys request to be called *Chosen One*: Ash snapped out of his slight daze to look up at the powerful psychic type who stood near the window - Mewtwo looked to the boy then turned his attention to the window, opening it silently with his psychic abilities, " _I wish to speak to you in private, lets go"_ Before Ash could object, he felt himself being lifted via Mewtwo's **Psychic,** who levitated the boy out the window and placing him on the ground safely - following behind and closing the window silently behind him.

Ash looked around as Mewtwo began floating towards the east, looking back for a second to look at the boy, " _Follow me"_ Ash frowned a little but followed the legendary pokemon regardless, glancing back at the Pokemon Center - Pikachu was asleep on his bed, and his poke'balls where in his bag, so he had nothing to defend himself with should he have to.

Eventually, Mewtwo came to a stop once they were a fair distance from the center: turning to face Ash, Mewtwo looked at his new trainer with a straight face as he spoke, " _I sense a great deal of pain within you - I wish to teach you how to start to heal your emotional wounds"_ Ash blinked in surprise at Mewtwo, shooting him a curious look, " _How exactly do you plan to do that?"_ Ash asked sceptically, raising a brow when Mewtwo walked closer to him.

 _"After speaking to Mew, I am aware that you are in-touch with your Aura - I can sense that you have the ability to do great things with the powers that come with Aura control - so I will teach you how to harness and control the power that lies within you"_ Mewtwo explained, watching as Ash shot him an unconvinced look as he replied, " _I know about my Aura, but what is their to learn? Aura is just the essence that every living thing has, what power's could come from it?"_

Ash blinked in surprise and slight offence when Mewtwo began to chuckle at him - with a scowl on his face, Ash crossed his arms and gave the chuckling pokemon a small glare, " _What's so funny?"_ The offended boy demanded, getting more annoyed as Mewtwo continued to chuckle, stopping after a few minutes to shake his head and look at Ash with sympathy, _"You humans are so naïve: Aura is not only the essence within living things - those with Aura like yours can learn to do amazing things that boarder with the abilities we pokemon poses"_ Mewtwo spoke with sympathy, making Ash huff and look away, " _Oh yeah? Like what?"_

 _"Have you forgot what happened back at the Tree Of Life? And of the pokemon Lucario?"_ Mewtwo asked, nodding when Ash shook his head to confirm that he remembered them both, " _Back at the Tree whilst wearing Sir Aarons gloves you were able to summon a sphere of energy around Mew - that was not by chance. The Aura inside you is similar to that of the pokemon Lucario's, just less powerful - with training you will be able to summon sphere's of Aura, produce protective barriers, and even gain the ability to communicate with your pokemon telepathically"_

Ash couldn't believe what he was hearing, " _Is that true? Can I really learn to do such amazing things?"_ Ash asked, now excited at the possibility of doing such things. Mewtwo rolled his eyes at the boys excitement but nodded, making Ash get that bit more excited, " _That's amazing! can we start training now? Please?"_ Mewtwo sighed but nodded before teleporting the two to the river they had met at the day before.

Looking around and nodding when the area was quiet and empty, Mewtwo turned to an excited Ash, " _The first thing we will have to work on is meditation - Aura is not something you can hold or touch, it is energy - the energy that resides within us that drives us to do the things we do"_ Ash nodded in understanding, slowly calming himself down as Mewtwo spoke, " _In order to harness the energy of your Aura you need to be in a meditate state - within the meditated state your mind is free of distractions from the outside world, that is the only way you will be able to harness your Aura"_

Ash nodded as he processed the information, " _So I need to meditate and get away from the world? Lets give it a try..."_ With those words, Ash walked over to the river and climbed onto a large boulder, crossing his legs and closing his eyes as he took slow deep breathes. Sensing Mewtwo's surprise, Ash smiled, " _When I was on mount silver, I meditated a lot to escape the reality I didn't want to face"_ Mewtwo blinked in curiousity at the mention of the mount but decided to leave it for another time, walking over to Ash and sitting next to him in a similar position as Ash quickly and easily slipped into his meditated state.

 **\- In Ash's Mind -**

Ash opened his eyes and looked around the darkness of his mind, smiling when Mewtwo manifested in front of him, " _What do I do now Mewtwo?"_ Ash asked as the pokemon appeared and turned to face Ash, " _Step 1 is complete, for the second step you need to focus on the feeling of your aura flowing through your body"_ Ash nodded and closed his eyes, focusing on his body and trying to feel his Aura - after a few minutes of silence, Ash opened his eyes to see his body glowing a faint light blue colour.

Looking to Mewtwo in concern, Ash relaxed when he sore the psychic type nod in approval, " _Good, you have located the aura within your body, now open you eyes"_ Mewtwo's voice echoed through Ash's mind as the boy's eyes slowly opened, glancing around before noticing his hands had began to glow a faint blue - just like inside his mind. _"Relax, your doing well Ash"_ At the sound of Mewtwo's voice, Ash nodded, calming down slowly, " _Stand up and hold your hands in front of you with your palms open: then focus again - channel your Aura into you hands and imagine a sphere forming in front of you, slowly growing larger"_ Mewtwo explained, watching as Ash followed his instructions.

Closing his eyes with his hands in front of him, Ash focused on feeling his Aura once more, his body glowing a faint blue as he easily found it and began channelling it to his hands, which began glowing a darker a blue as the Aura entered them. Ash felt a rush as the aura flowed to his hands, his fingers tingling as the power filled them, but Ash stayed focus, starting to imagine a sphere shape in front of him.

 _"Open your eyes"_ Ash open his eyes at Mewtwo's words - which widened when he sore a small blue sphere in front of his hands: seeing the sphere made Ash lose his focus, making the small sphere shoot out from his hand, disinagrating as it flew through the air, " _D-Did I do that?"_

 _"Yes you did, impressive for your first time - but you have a long ways to go yet Ash"_ Mewtwo replied, watching as the blue light faded from Ash's hands. Ash went to speak whilst taking a step towards Mewtwo, only to grunt and fall to his knees, gripping his heart, " _Shit..."_ He cursed under his breath as the pain shot through his heart, looking up at Mewtwo as he walking over to him, waving a glowing hand over him - suddenly the pain in his chest stopped, making Ash sigh in relief and slowly stand up, " _W-what was that? why did my chest start to hurt?"_

 _"When you use your Aura, it takes a toll on your body since your taking your life force and focusing it to one place"_ Mewtwo explained, " _I used my psychic power's to relieve the pain and set your aura back to its normal state - the more you practice using your aura, the less pain you will feel"_

Ash nodded whilst letting a yawn out, rubbing his eyes sleepily, " _That's enough for today - anymore and you will risk severely damaging yourself - lets get back"_ Mewtwo stated before teleporting him and Ash back to the bedroom. Ash blinked but nodded, sitting back down on his bed when he appeared back in his room: luckily for him he got a room to himself this time, so he didn't have to worry about waking anyone up. Kicking his shoes off, Ash laid down on his bed and close his eyes, quickly falling sleep as Mewtwo walked back over to the window and resumed starring out into the darkness of the night.


	29. Signing Up

Staring up at the Hearthome City Contest Hall, Ash nodded to himself, looking to his left to see an excited Maddison looking up at the building in awe - the other's had gone to explore the surrounding area's, being that they had never been to Sinnoh before, Ash didn't mind: But Maddison insisted on going with him. Chuckling softly at her excitement, Ash walked into the building - Maddison running behind him, only stopping when she crashed into Ash's body: who had stopped and was staring ahead - his body frozen in shock.

" _Dawn"_ Maddison heard Ash whisper, making her look over his shoulder to see who he was talking about: ahead of Ash stood by the receptionist desk was a girl - Maddison guessed she was around 12 like her - with long dark blue hair covered with a white beanie. Ash noticed the different clothing she was wearing - instead of the old adventure clothes she wore through Sinnoh, she now sported a thick pink jacket with lighter shaded pink buttons, a white scarf and a slightly darker shade of pink boots. On her shuolder sat a small blue, penguin like pokemon, Piplup.

Ash and Maddison watched as the girl, Dawn, signed up for the next contest befroe disappearing round the corner: Maddison looked to Ash in concern - she remembered him mentioning a girl by the name of Dawn when he explained it all to her and the others, " _Ash? Are you okay?"_ Ash nodded stiffly at first before a small, sly grin began to form on his face, making Maddison look confused.

 _"I know the perfect way to get back at Dawn, and to see if she has some of my old pokemon..."_ Ash said to himself quietly, walking forwards to the desk, making the receptionist look up at Ash with a smile, " _How can i help you today sir?"_ She asked, Ash replied by - to Maddison's surprise - pulling out his pokedex and handing it to the lady, " _I would like to sign up and compete in the contest please"_

The woman nodded and took the pokedex, a returning a few seconds later with a contest pass and a ribbon case - handing them to Ash with a smile, " _There you go sir, the contest begins at 9:00 tomorrow morning, good luck"_ Ash nodded in thanks as he took the items and palced them in his pockets, turning and walking out the contest hall, Maddison trailing behind him quickly with the look of confusion still on her face.

 _"I thought you said you weren't into Contests Ash? Why did you sign up?"_ Maddison asked, watching as Ash stopped and turned to her with a smile, " _I may not be the biggest fan of Contests, but i have competed in a few in my travels - Dawn is like May, with a love of contests - So the best way to see if she is abusing any of my old pokemon, or her own: and to get my revenge for her betrayal, is to beat her at what she cherishes the most: A Pokemon Contest"_

 **\- With The Others On Route 212 -**

 _"You guys see any pokemon?"_ Richie asked as the him, A.J, Jason and Natalie walked through the tall grass of route 212. Hearing a collection of " _No"_ from the other's made Richie sigh in frustration, " _You think there would be loads of different pokemon he- Wait! I spot one!"_ Richie exclaimed, pushing through the grass to come face to face with a pokemon, " _Hey Natalie! Use the pokedex Maddison lent you to see what pokemon that is!"_

Natalie nodded as she and the other's followed Richie through the grass: Spotting the pokemon in front of them, Natalie pulled out the pokedex and pointed it towards the pokemon:

 **Minun - The Cheering Pokemon**

 _Minun is more concerned about cheering on its partners than its own safety. It shorts out the electricity in its body to create brilliant showers of sparks to cheer on its teammates._

" _nun?"_ The blue and cream colored pokemon spoke with question, getting into a defensive position when A.J stepped forwards with a poke'ball in his hand, " _I'm going to try and catch it!"_ He stated with excitement - the other's nodded and stepped back as A.J threw a poke'ball into the air, releasing his Hitmonchan, " _Alright Hitmonchan, use_ **Bullet Punch!"** Hitmonchan shouted his name, his fist glowing a soft silver color and hitting the wild Minun at immense speed.

 _"Minun!"_ The wild pokemon shout as the attack hit him, sending him skidding through the grass, slowly standing up with electricity sparking of his cheeks - making A.J smirk, " _This little one is tough, i got to catch it now, use_ **Fire Punch!"** A.J commanded, watching as Hitmonchan ran at the small electric pokemon, his fist reared back and surrounded with fire. Minun reacted faster this time, disappearing just as Hitmonchan swung his fist to hit him.

" _Wow, that was one fast_ **Quick Attack"** Natalie complimented as Minun appeared behind Hitmonchan - his cheeks charging as he shouted, " _Mi-Nuuuuun!"_ Electricity shout out from the electric types cheeks as it released its **Discharge,** Hitting Hitmonchan directly and making the pokemon cry out In pain, " _Channn!"_ The Punching Pokemon cried for a second, quickly jumping out thew way and shaking the attack off with a similar smirk to A.J, who quickly commanded, " **Sky Uppercut!"** To which Hitmonchan ran downwards, angling his fist to hit Minun under his chin, sending the pokemon flying.

" _Now's my chance! Go poke'ball!"_ A.J shouted, throwing an empty poke'ball at the flying pokemon, watching as it go sucked into the poke'ball - said poke'ball falling to the ground and wobbling side to side a few times before dinging: Minun was Caught! With a proud smile, A.J walked forwards and picked up the poke'ball with a smile, turning to face Hitmonchan who held a fist up in pride, " _Great job Hitmonchan, we caught Minun!"_ A.J praised the pokemon, meeting his fist for a weird sort of high five before returning the pokemon.

Placing the newly caught pokemon on his belt, A.J turned and blinked when he sore Richie in the middle of fighting a wild pokemon and shouting, " _Go Poke'ball!"_ throwing a poke'ball and quickly capturing the wild pokemon. A.J blinked and walked over to the other's as Richie picked up the poke'ball, placing it on his belt as Sparky jumped from the field back onto his shoulder, " _What did you catch Richie? "A Meowth, she must have heard the commotion and wanted to see what was going on so i caught her"_

 _"Good catch guys"_ The gorup turned to see Maddison and Ash walking towards them with a smile, " _Minun is a good electric type, and Meowth can be quiet the strong pokemon if you train them right"_ Ash continued, watching as Natalie handed Maddison her pokedex back: _"You guys finished in Hearthome already?"_ A.J asked in surprise - watching as Maddison shook her head and Ash pulled out his new contest pass to show the group, " _Not in the slightest - I signed up to be in the contest tomorrow: that way i can beat Dawn at her own game"_ Ash explained to the confused looking group, who nodded as Ash put the pass away once more.

 _"I need to do a bit of training for the contest, I'm a little rusty at the whole *making your pokemon look pretty* thing, so would you guys watch and let me know how it looks?"_ Ash asked the group as they walked out from the tall grass, a poke'ball in each of his hand. When the group nodded, Ash smiled and threw the two poke'balls into the air and began to practice his performance.

* * *

 **Can you guys guess which pokemon Ash will use to In the contest?**


	30. Contest Debut

Ash could feel the hot glare that Dawn was shooting him as he waited to be called to the stage - he smirked knowing that the girl was surprised but angry to see him entering into a contest, but Ash didn't care: he came here for revenge and he was going to get it. Looking down at his outfit, Ash grimaced - he hated the stupid grey shirt, pants and tie he had to were - " **I'll never understand why the trainers have to dress up - its superposed to be about the pokemon"** Ash thought, standing up and walking to the door when he heard his name shouted.

Taking a deep breath, Ash smiled as he ran out onto the stage, jumping and twisting his body whilst shouting, " _To the field!"_ The poke'balls opened in the air, releasing Sceptile and Buizel. Buizel did a 360 spin as he appeared, landing on Sceptile's shoulders - who landed on his knees with his eyes closed as the weasel pokemon landed on his shoulders. The crowd cheered as the announcer, Marian, stepped forwards, " _Up next is Ash Ketchum in his Contest debut with his Buizel and Sceptile! How will this new contest star fair? lets watch and find out!"_

Ash smirked at the announcement and looked to his pokemon, _"Sceptile use_ **Dragon Breath,** _Buizel use_ **Water Gun!"** Buizel jumped from Sceptile's shoulders as the grass type opened his eyes, angling his head upwards and shooting the **Dragon Breath** in an arc shape - Buizel quickly shot a powerful stream of water, which streamed through the **Dragon Breath** making it turn a purple color before they vanished, a series of sparkles falling on the two pokemon as the crowd cheers. Not letting up, Ash quickly instructed his two pokemon once more, _"Sceptile use_ **Protect** then **Energy Ball!** _Buizel use_ **Sonicboom!"**

Sceptile crossed his arms, his entire body now surrounded by a protective barrier as Buizel flung multiple **Sonicboom's** at him, which bounced of the protect and flew threw the air like a boomerang. Sceptile quickly shot a series of **Energy balls** at the boomeranging **Sonicboom's,** which collided together with no explosion, instead the **Sonicboom's** started circling the balls of green energy. The crowd watch in awe as Ash smirked and called for his final move, " _Buizel! Use_ **Ice Punch!** Sceptile use **Bullet Seed!"**

Buizel swung himself around, hitting the boomeranging **Sonicboom/Energy Balls,** freezing them on contact before landing into the water in front of the stage: Sceptile followed up by shooting single seeds at each of the falling move combined balls, shattering them and showering him and Buizel in a sparkling light as he landed in the same position in front of the pool of water as he entered - Buizel popped his head up out the water, sending a small pulse of water up that framed the kneeling Sceptile's face.

The room was silent for a few seconds before everyone roared in amazement at the display Ash had shown, " _What a performance! An amazing first time for a beginner! Lets see what are judges think!"_ Marian announced, turning and pointing her hand to the three judges. The first one, Mr. Contesta smiled and nodded, " _Truly an amazing performance! The combination of power and grace was a sight to behold!"_ The second judge, Mr. Sukizo nodded with his normal smile, " _I have to say it was trly remarkable!"_ he stated, before the final judge, the local Nurse Joy chirped in, " _Absolutely breathtaking the way Sceptile destroyed the balls of ice! Truly beautiful!"_

Ash smiled and bowed, watching as Buizel jumped from the water and Sceptile stood up, both bowing as well before the three walked of the stage whilst waving to the crowd - disappearing behind the curtain.

 **\- 10 Minutes later -**

Ash watched as the screen started to show the different people who had made it through to the next round, smirking when his face was the first one to pop up - followed by Dawn's and 6 other unnamed contestants. Ash watched as the pictures all mixed around, nodding when he was matched up a young girl name Stacy, Ash gripped his hat, which he had worn through the performance and readjusted, turning when he heard approaching footsteps - only to see Dawn walking up to him with an angry look on her face.

 _"What are you doing here?"_ The blue haired girl demanded, a glare on both her and Piplup's face - which grew more angry as Ash laughed at the question before he looked at her with an uninterested face, " _It's none of you dam business why i'm here - you just need to know, in the final's? Your going down"_ Dawn growled at his words, turning and stomping away as the other contestants watched the exchange, making the co-coordinator blush at the stares.

Ash smirked to himself at her reaction, which turned to a smile when he sore Natalie, Maddison and Pikachu enter the room and run over to him, " _That was amazing Ash! "Pika!"_ Ash smiled at the praise Maddison and Pikachu gave him with a shrug, looking to Natalie who nodded at him before looking at the three, " _It was easy, but i can't reveal my secrets...sorry!"_ Ash laughed, making the girls roll their eyes but smile at his childish attitude - it was a nice change from the usual serious boy they were use to.

 _"You ready to finish this off Pikachu?"_ Ash asked the electric mouse, who nodded with a determined face, jumping from Maddison's shoulder to his and pumping a small fist in the air, " _Pika-Pikachu!"_ Ash nodded, watching the girls wish him look before leaving the room as he got ready for the second round.

* * *

Stepping out onto the stage once more, Ash smiled at the cheers of his name from around the stadium - people already loved him, after only his first performance! Stopping on his side, Ash watched as a young girl with black hair and green eyes walked onto the stage nervously, " **Must be here first contest...poor girl..."** Ash thought sympathetically as her sore the girl nervously reach for two poke'balls throwing them shakily whilst shouting, " _G-Go!"_

A Beautifly and Dustox appeared from the poke'balls, fluttering around the field whilst Dustox released small dust around them, making the two pokemon sparkle against the lights. Ash smiled and nodded at Pikachu, who jumped from his shoulder, his tail glowing silver as he span, the shine of the lights making his tail sparkle as he landed on the stage, cheeks sparkling a soft yellow: Gripping his poke'ball, Ash threw it into the air, smirking at the crowd, his opponent and the judges all gasped at the pokemon.

" _Mew!"_ Mew squeaked cutely upon release, twirling upside down and chasing her tail playfully - sending the girls in the crowd into a series of loud, " _AWWW"_ at the cute display. Shaking her shock off, Marian smiled and stepped forwards, " _The first battle will be between Stacy Yuri and her Beautifly and Dustox; And Ash Ketchum and his Pikachu and amazingly the mythical pokemon Mew! Let the battle begin!"_ She finished, stepping back as Stacy shook her own shock away, a look of determinatoin coming to her face, " _Beautifly use_ **Silver Wind,** _Dustox use_ **Confusion!"**

 _"Both of you jump and spin to dodge! then both of you use_ **Thunderbolt!"** Ash called as the opposing pokemon combined their moves, Beautifly's **Silver Wind** becoming surrounded by Dustox's **Confusion** as it sped towards Pikachu and Mew, who easily jumped and span, flying over the attack and landing with a sparkle on their coats - making Stacy's point conter go down slightly. Pikachu and Mew looked to each other and nodded - Pikachu jumped as Mew moved her tail to push Pikachu higher, both of them charging and shooting powerful **Thunderbolts,** hitting the two pokemon directly - easily knocking them our.

The three buzzers sounded as the room went silent in shock from the power Ash's two pokemon, before erupting into wild cheers: Stacy sniffed and returned the two fallen pokemon, sliding down to her knees, not noticing Ash walking over to her until he placed a hand on her shoulder, making her look up with tear filled eyes at the smiling face of Ash, " _Hey STacy...your Beautifly and Dustox are amazing and beautiful, don't let one loss get you down - it just means next time you will fight harder right?"_

The crowd smiled as Ash comforted Stacy, who smiled weakly and nodded, standing and wiping her tears before shaking the boys outstretched hand. Marian smiled and spoke into the mike with a happy voice, " _Isn't that a great show of sportsmanship folks? Lets give both trainers a huge round of applause!"_ The crowd followed suit and cheered loudly, making Ash turn and wave before encouraging Stacy to do the same - who blushed and shyly waved to the crowd before the two left the stage: Stacy walking out the back door towards her parents and Ash taking a seat.

\- **The final round -**

Every battle after his first ended the same: with Ash as the winner. The final contestants were Ash and Dawn, who stood facing each other on the stage as Marian spoke into the mike, " _Well folks its been a crazy contest so far, and we are down to our final competitors, Ash Ketchum - the newest star to born and Dawn Blitz - Sinnoh Contest Superstar! Who will emerge victorious in today's contest? Lets find out! Begin!"_

Dawn smirked as she looked at Ash, two poke'balls in her hand, " _You may have lucked out getting this far but now its over, Levanny, Swellow, Spotlight!"_ She announced, throwing the two poke'balls into the air with a small spin. Ash watched closely as the two pokemon that were once his appeared to the field, cries of their names echoing in his ears as Swellow flew around the room with grace and Leavanny rolled on the floor, sitting up on her knees with her blade arms outstretched whilst Swellow landed on the grass/bug types head.

The two pokemon fumbled slightly, eyes wide when they sore the judging eyes of their previous trainer: Ash Ketchum. Quickly they regained their composure, their eyes hardening to glares, making Ash sigh in his head, " **Too bad...guess i'll have to beat them right here, right now"** Ash thought, nodding to Pikachu and to Mew, who each sat on Ash's shoulders - Mew flew behind Pikachu and picked up the electric mouse who gave the crowd a cute smile as Mew flew him around the crowd before flying back to the stage, throwing Pikachu into the air who span in a ball, landing with a smile as Mew did somersaults above his head.

 _"Lets finish this girls, Levanny jump and use_ **Razor Spin!** _Swellow use_ **Quick Ace!"** Dawn commanded, making Ash roll his eyes, " _Copying my old techniques? i thought i was a terrible trainer with bad techniques?"_ Ash laughed out, Making Dawn blush with anger. Looking to mew and Pikachu, Ash nodded to them, " _Mew use_ **Fire Spin,** _Pikachu use_ **Double Quick Attack"** he commanded as Levanny jumped and spun herself around, sending a barrage or sharp leaves towards his pokemon whislt Swellow zipped around the room with **Quick Attack** before speeding towards Mew with **Arial Ace.**

Pikachu and Mew jumped, swapping sides as the attacks barreled towards them: Pikachu quickly duplicated dozens of himself before zipping aorund the stage floor, evading every leaf that Levanny shot at him whilst Mew opened her small mouth, releasing a huge spiraling **Fire Spin,** that surrounded Swellow - who stopped upon being surrounded, " _Mew, grab Levanny and throw it into the fire, then Pikachu jump into the fire and use **Thunder"**_

 _"Leavanny dodge! Swellow try and get out of there!"_ Dawn cried out - but she was to late. Before either of her pokemon could react, Mew had disappeared and reappeared behind Levanny who was still shooting her **Razor Leaf's** at the Pikachu clones, grabbing onto her head crest, Mew with suprising strength flung Levanny into the still swirling fire surrounding Swellow.

Levanny cried out as she smacked into Swellow, clinging onto the bird pokemon so she would fall: Swellow cawed suddenly, both of them looking down in fear as Pikahcu appeared under the fire, jumping up with an evil look in his eyes as his cheeks sparked, " _Pika-CHUUUU!"_ The electric mouse shouted, releasing the powerful electric attack into the flames.

 _"SWELLOW!" "LEAVANNY"_ The two pokemon cried loudly as the two attacks combined, surrounding each of them with fire and electricity as they fell to the ground: Mew flew over and caught Pikachu as he began to fall, flying over to Ash and placing the pokemon onto the floor safely before the three all looked back to the other two pokemon who were struggling to get to their feet.

Ash's eyes widen and he shouted stop as Dawn ordered the two to attack, " _STOP!"_


	31. Dawn Of A New Day

" _STOP!"_

The sound of Ash's booming voice silenced the room - everyone's attention sticking to the furious raven-haired boy, watching as Pikachu and Mew jumped back to his shoulders as he walked to stand in front of the Levanny and Swellow: who were still surrounded and twitching in pain from the attacks still wrapped around their bodies. Stopping and looking down at the fallen pokemon, Ash felt a pang of sympathy before looking to Mew, " _Mew use_ **Heal Pulse"** Mew nodded, floating of Ash's shoulder to float in front of the injured pokemon - her body began to glow a faint pink as waves of energy emitted from her body, hitting the two pokemon who flinched but sighed in relief as their energy slowly came back to them, " _Pikachu, use_ **Iron Tail,** _get rid of the fire and electricity around them"_

Pikachu nodded, jumping down to the floor - Ash watched as his best friends tail glowed its trade-mark silver before Pikachu swung it, destroying the fire/electric attacks aroundn the two pokemon who slowly stood up when free. Ash looked at Dawn with emotionless eyes, " _This battle is over"_ He stated as he watched her blink and grow angry once more, " _What are you tlaking about?! My pokemon are fine!"_

Pikachu's eyes widened at the words, quickly grabbing Mew and moving away as Ash's eyes slowly filled with rage once more, his entire body beginning to shake, " _Okay?! OKAY?! YEAH THEIR OKAY NOW THANKS TO MEW!"_ Ash roared, making Dawn, Levanny and Swellow recoil in shock at the anger and hatred they sore in his eyes, " _YOU WERE GOING TO MAKE THOSE TWO KEEP FIGHTING REGARDLESS OF HOW HURT THEY WERE! AND YOUR POKEMON?! DONT YOU MEAN MY STOLEN POKEMON?!"_ Ash continued, making Marian, the judges and the crowd all gasp in shock and look to Dawn who just stared at Ash in fear - she had never seen Ash this angry, not even when she use to travel with him!

Hearing the gasps, Ash looked around the room at the people, taking a step away from Dawn and the two pokemon to address them, " _You heard me right everyone, my STOLEN pokemon! Neither Levanny or Swellow belong to Dawn - i caught and raised them! And i can prove it!"_ Everyone watched in shock as Ash pulled out his pokedex and pointed it at both pokemon:

 **Swellow, The Swallow Pokemon,**

 _Swellow flies high above our heads, making graceful arcs in the sky. This pokemon dives at a steep angle as soon as it spots its prey. The hapless prey is tightly grasped by Swellow's clawed feet, preventing escape._

 **Owner - Ash Ketchum**

 **Levanny, The Nurturing Pokemon,**

 _Upon finding a small pokemon, it weaves clothing for it from leaves by using the sticky silk secreted from its mouth_.

 **Owner - Ash Ketchum**

 _"See? Dawn is a thief, and a threat to her pokemon! You all sore her order her pokemon to attack when they were unable to! what does that tell you?!"_ Ash finished, snapping his pokedex as the crowd began to shout and boo at Dawn, who looked around the room with tears in her eyes. Nurse joy stood up from her spot and pulled out a radio, calling security who arrived quickly and apprehended Dawn, taking Levanny and Swellow's poke'balls and handing them to Ash, " _Dawn Blitz your under arrest for pokemon theft and for the crime of forcing your pokemon to continue whilst they were injured!"_

After returning the two pokemon that stood and watched in shock as Dawn was taken away, Ash placed the poke'balls into his side pocket, turning to Marian with a slightly guilty look, moving his look to the judges and finally to the crowd, " _I'm so sorry you had to see that - Dawn isn't the only one who has stolen pokemon from me, their are others, also officers? Dawn happens to have two more of my pokemon, my Quilarva and Torkoal"_ Ash spoke up, to which the officers nodded, forcing Dawn to hand the two pokemon's poke'balls over before handing them to Ash who nodded and placed them with the others.

Ashe turned to Marian to apologies once more, but was surprised when she held out a dark purple ribbon to him, making him look at her with a confused look. Marian smiled and placed the ribbon into his hand whilst moving the mike to her mouth to talk to him and the crowd, " _After everything that has come to lite, you most defiantly won, and deserve this ribbon! Right everyone?"_ The crowd's booing stopped to roar a chorus of, " _YES!"_ as everyone in the hall, including the judges and the other competitors that had stayed to watch all stood and applauded loudly.

Ash looked down at the ribbon in his hand, a watery smile on his face as Pikachu and Mew ran back to him, jumping into his arms, " _Pikapii!" "Mew-Mew!"_ Ash turned to the crowd and held up the ribbon proudly, using his other hand to hold the two hugging pokemon close - making the crowd cheer that much louder, stamping their feet and clapping their hands to produce as much noise as possible.

\- **10 minutes later in the Contest hall reception -**

 _"I hope when my son and daughter start their journey they turn out just like you young man!"_ Ash smiled at the compliment a young mother gave him as she left the building - Ever since he left the stage he'd been getting compliments and back slaps: he wasn't very comfortable with it, but he didn't want to upset anyone so he allowed it: " _ASH!"_ turning at the sound of his name, Ash smiled with relief when he sore Maddison and the other's heading his way - yelping when they all jumped and hugged the boy, knocking his hat off and sending him to the ground.

Ash let out a laugh as they hugged him, moving his arms to hug them all back as best he could: Maddison lifted her head and shot Ash a huge grin, " _That was the bravest thing I've ever seen someone do before!"_ Ash smiled with a small blush as they let him go, standing up to watch Ash grab his ht and stand up, placing said hat back on his head.

" _Yeah man, that was hard-core what you just did, pound it!"_ Jason shouted, offering Ash his fist, making Ash chuckle as he bumped his fist back, _"I just said what needed to be said"_ Ash replied as A.J, Richie and Natalie carried on to compliment him - making the boy rub the back of his head with an embarrassed look on his face, " _Its not that big of a deal guys..."_

 _"Actually young man its a very big deal what you did back there"_ Ash heard a female voice tell him, making him turn to see the Officer Jenny of the town walking towards him, " _Thanks to you we have apprehended not only a pokemon thief, but someone who shows no regard for her pokemon's well-being, for that i thank you"_ Jenny continued, saluting Ash who blushed more in embarrassment, " _Now if you and your friends will follow me to the station - I have a few questions i need to ask"_ Ash and his friends all nodded, following Jenny out fo the Contest Hall and towards the station.

 **\- 35 Minutes later: 5:45 pm -**

Ash and the other's walked out fo the police station and towards the pokemon center: the group chatted about what had happened - all but Ash who was deep in thought. Natalie noticed how quiet Ash was and stopped to look at him, the other's stopping soon afterwards, " _Whats wrong Ash? Your being more quiet than normal..."_ Ash blinked, snapping out of his thoughts to look at Natalie with a nod, " _I'm fine, their is jsut something i need to do first, you guys go on ahead - ll be back soon, dont worry"_ Ash told them as he turned and walked in the opposite direction - the group looked to each other in concern before turning and continuing to the pokemon center, the same thought on all their minds, " **Where's Ash going?"** Pikachu continued to look back from his place on Maddison's shoulder, a look of knowing on his face.

* * *

Ash stopped once he reached the outskirts of route 209: throwing a poke'ball in the air, Ash watched as Mewtwo appeared in front him, shaking his head before looking at Ash, " _Man those things are uncomfortable...what is it you need?"_ Mewtwo asked Ash, stretching his neck slightly before he noticed the serious look on Ash's face. Ash explain to Mewtwo what had happened, " _I have four of my old pokemon with me - can you translate what they say when i talk to them please?"_

Mewtwo looked angry at what Ash had told him about Dawn, but took a deep breath - reassuring himself that humanity still had good in it - and nodded at Ash's requst, making Ash smile in thanks as he reach into his side pocket and pulled out the first poke'ball. pressing the center and watching as Swellow appeared in front of him, cawing her name and glaring at Ash initially, only to step back in fear once she noticed Mewtwo.

" _Swellow,"_ Ash stated, watching as the Hoenn native bird pokemon turned to look at him, the glare returning to her face - making Ash sigh as he dropped her poke'ball on the floor, _"Dawn is gone - she's being locked away and you won't ever see her again: soon all those who betrayed and stole from me will join her"_ Ash started, making Swellow look slightly upset: sending a jolt of pain through Ash's heart that Mewtwo felt, but decided to stay quiet as Ash spoke to the bird pokemon.

" _I don't know why, and i don't care why you betrayed me anymore - but i won't forgive you or force you to go with me, so your free"_ Ash continued, stamping on Swellow's poke'ball, crushing it into a thousand pieces before looking at the surprised bird pokemon's face, " _This isn't Hoenn, but this is your new home now, go - do what you want with your life - but i hope you always remember the pain you and the others caused me: and what you could have achieved had you stayed"_ Ash finished, prompting Swellow to fly up and away from Ash, a conflicted look on her face.

Ash took a slow shaky breath, making Mewtwo look to his trainer in concern, " _Are you okay? I sensed the pain you felt doing that"_ Ash closed his eyes whilst taking a deep breath and nodded, opening his eyes to look at the psychic pokemon with a straight face, " _I'm fine, it had to be done - there are more, lets keep going"_


	32. Death

Ash sighed as he watched Levanny walk away from him, disappearing from his sight as she walked through the trees: running a hand through his hair Ash looked to Mewtwo with a crestfallen face, " _I'll never understand why they left me...all I did was care for them, but I can't force them to love me if they don't..."_ Ash forced his tears back as he spoke - making Mewtwo look at the boy with a look of sympathy and respect.

" _I do not know myself - but you are a remarkable human, as I have seen over time: a lot of humans force a pokemon to follow them whether they want to or not - you give them a choice"_ Mewtwo spoke to Ash, placing a hand on his shoulder - Ash smiled and nodded whilst pulling out the third poke'ball. Before he pressed the poke'ball Ash took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he finally pressed the button: releasing Quilarva in front of him.

The fire type appeared in front of Ash curled up in a ball, a small whimper emitting from his mouth - Ash frowned at his old pokemon's position, leaning down to place a gentle hand on his back, " _Dawn is gone"_ Quilarva's eyes sprung open at the familiar voice, quickly uncurling himself and looking up at Ash in joy, " _Quilarva!"_ he shouted, jumping on Ash - making the boy fall back slightly as he caught the fire type who began to cry into Ash's shirt. Ash smiled a little - knowing Quilarva's reaction meant one thing, " _You didn't want to leave me did you?"_ Ash asked gently, smiling when he felt the fire type nod his head against his chest: Ash held Quilarva close and let the pokemon cry - he needed to talk to him, but for now he knew his old friend needed to let all his emotions out.

Mewtwo watched the two in fascination, " **Why aren't humans like this boy? He cares so much and understand pokemon even without using his Aura..."** he thought to himself as he watched Ash pull Quilarva back to gently wipe the tears in his eyes, a gentle smile on his face. " _I'm so happy to here that Quilarva, but there is something you need to know,"_ Ash started, making both Quilarva and Mewtwo look to Ash as his face changed to a soft, but stern look.

 _"Your not the only one who was forced to leave: there were others who I have managed to rescue from the traitors - Bulbasaur, Croconaw, Buizel, Kingler and Emboar"_ Ash started, moving Quilarva off his lap to the floor before standing up, " _And just like with them I have a process - I understand you were forced to leave, but that's neither here nor their: what you did hurt me, a lot"_ Quilarva cried his name softly whilst kicking a small rock to the side - looking down with guilt, " _However - I'm willing to give you another chance, but you will have to work on earning my trust back: prove to me that your loyal to me and won't leave me ever again, understood?"_

 _"Quil-Quil-Quilarva!"_

 _"He said he is sorry for hurting you and promised to spend all his time earning back your trust and proving his loyalty"_ Mewtwo translated upon Ash looking to him for an explanation. With a smile and a nod, Ash looked back at Quilarva and held his poke'ball up, " _That means a lot, return for now and we can catch up late, okay? Return"_ Ash confirmed, watching as the red light shot out to the now smiling fire type, returing him to the poke'ball before Ash slipped it into his other pocket.

Mewtwo watched as Ash smile faded as he, for the final time pulled out a poke'ball from his pocket, " _Last one?"_ Mewtwo inquired, nodding when Ash himself nodded in confirmation, " _I sense a great feeling of dread and pain coming from that poke'ball"_ Mewtwo warned, making Ash frown at the poke'ball for a second before letting the final pokemon, Torkoal, out.

Ash gasped at what he sore: Torkoal was badly soaked - his entire body was covered in water! Looking down at Torkoal, who's eyes were scrunched up in pain, Ash noticed a large gash on the fire type's front leg and one of his back legs was bent at an abnormal angle, " _What did she do to you?"_ Ash choked out at the sight of the pokemon, leaning down and placing a hand on his shell gently before quickly looking up at Mewtwo, " _Teleport us to the Pokemon Center now!"_ Mewtwo shook his own shock away, quickly complying and teleporting the three to the pokemon center.

Picking Torkoal up as they teleported, Ash ignored the collection of horrified gasps and ran to the front desk where an equally horrified looking Nurse Joy stood, " _Nurse Joy, Torkoal needs help!"_ Ash shouted, placing the badly hurt pokemon on the desk. Nurse joy pressed a button, setting of an alarm that echoed through the center: before anyone could blink, several Chansey's appeared, picking up Torkoal and rushing into the operating room - Nurse Joy following closely behind them.

" _Ash! What happened?!"_ Richie exclaimed as he and the others ran up to Ash's side - but Ash didn't answer, instead he silently walked over to the operating room and peered through the window, watching as Nurse Joy and the Chansey's ran around Torkoal frantically, " _How could she..."_ The group heard Ash whisper, a small crack in his voice, " _Please be okay...please..."_

 **\- 3 Hours later -**

Ash, now sat on the couch closest to the operating room, continued to stare up at the bright red light above the door. hands clasped between his knees as he rocked backwards and forwards slowly. Richie and A.J looked at Ash before looking to each other, " _He's been sat their for nearly 3 hours..."_ Richie whispered to A.J in concern, who nodded in response, turning to look at Maddison who was watching Ash with a concerned and scared look, " _Hey Maddison...think you could try talking to him? Me and Richie will go see whats taking Jason And Natalie so long to get those sodas okay?"_ Maddison bit her lip but nodded, watching as the two boys stood up and left to search for Jason and Natalie. Taking a deep breath as she stood, Maddison slowly slide over to Ash, sitting down next to him with a slightly nervous face: Ash didn't react - continuing to stare at the red light with unblinking eyes.

 _"Ash..."_ Maddison spoke softly, frowning when Ash didn't reply or move: Pikachu jumped from her shoulder to Ash's hoping to get a reaction: Briefly glancing at Pikachu before training his eyes back to the light, " _What?!"_ He bit out in a harsh tone, making Maddison flinch at the harshness, " _Y-your scaring me...A-and Pikachu and the other's...w-were worried"_ At Maddison's words Ash stopped for a second, sighing and closing his eyes before reaching up a ahnd to gently stroke Pikachu's cheek whilst turning to face Maddison:

 _"Look i'm sorry...I'm just worried about Torkoal...he was so hurt Maddison - i-i-it was horrible..."_ Ash chocked out, a single tear sliding down his face. Maddison sniffed and wrapped her arms around Ash, hugging him with all she could: Ash let her hug him, slowly hugging her back, stopping and quickly snapping his head to the side when he heard the light ding and the door open to reveal a sad looking Nurse joy.

Ash's face turned to horror at the Nurse Joy's face, " _No...No please..."_ He whispered as Nurse Joy shook her head, small tears in her eyes, " _I-I-I'm sorry...T-the damages where to sever..."_ Nurse Joy explained shkily, making Maddison's face turn to horror as well as Ash shot to his feet and shouting, " _NO!"_ before running out the pokemon center, Pikachu hot on his heels whilst Maddison stood up and shouted after him.

 _-_ **Scene break -**

Ash's feet pounded against the floor as he ran away from the pokemon center with tears streaming down his cheeks. slowing down once he was outside the city, Ash panted heavily, not noticing his hat had flew of his head during his run, or that Pikachu wasn't far behind him as he collapsed to the floor, gripping the grass with his fists as he sobbed, " _NO, NO, NO! TORKOAL CAN'T BE GONE! HE CAN'T BE DEAD!"_ Ash screamed to the sky as rain began to pound down against him.

" _SHE KILLED HIM! SHE KILLED HIM! SHE...s-s-she killed him...t-t-t-torkoal..."_ Ash sobbed, his voice barley over a whisper as his head dropped and he sobbed, his tears mixing with the rain as it soaked his exposed hair and dripped down his face, " _H-How could she?"_ _"Pikapii!"_ At the sound of Pikachu's voice, Ash turned to see the yellow mouse, his forgotten hat in his mouth, " _H-h-he's gone Pikachu...S-She killed him"_ He whispered to his starter, who sniffed, dropping the hat and running into Ash's waiting arms, his own tears nwo streaming down his face, " _P-pikapii..."_

The two sat in the rain for a few minutes, clinging and refusing to let each other go as they cried - the rain pounding harder and harder as they cried, " _Ash"_ Ash hiccuped softly, looking up whilst still holding onto Pikachu closely to see Natalie stood over him, an umbrella in her hand and a sad look on her face, " _Come on Ash..."_ She whispered gently, kneeling next to him as she spoke, reaching a hand out and placing it on his cheek gently, " _I-i'm sorry...come on...we need to get out of the rain..."_ She finished, watching as Ash shook his head, his wet raven hair moving out his face to reveal his broken eyes, " _I-I-I can't go...T-Torkoal is..."_

 _"I know...I know..."_ Natalie whispered to the boy, discarding the umbrella and wrapping her arms around the crying trainer and pokemon, her own tears threatening to fall as she spoke to the boy, " _H-He didn't deserve it - no pokemon does...I-i'm so sorry Ash..."_ Ash hiccuped and continued to sob, wrapping an arm around the girl whilst still hugging Pikachu - who had started to calm down.

Natalie shivered as the rain started to soak her - but she didn't care: her friend needed her and she going to be their for him in his tie of need. Lifting her head and looking around, Natalie noticed a small opening in a cave to the side: nudging Ash and indicating to the cave, Natalie smiled weakly and helped the shaking boy stand, " _Come on...lets get out this rain..."_


	33. New Emotions

Ash stared motionlessly into the fire that Natalie had built, his arms wrapped around his chest as Pikachu slept on his lap - completely exhausted from his crying. Ash himself was exhausted, but couldn't bring himself to go to sleep - How could he after what had happened? " _Torkoal..."_ Natalie heard Ash whisper as she squeezed the water from her hair, turning to see the boy staring into the flames, rocking backwards and forwards ever so gently.

" _Ash..."_

 _"Torkoal was always a bit emotional, "_ Ash interrupted in solemn voice, his eyes never leaving the blase of the flames, " _He'd cry when he was happy or sad - he was a wiz a playing football and always fought his hardest...How can he be gone..."_ Ash continued, burying his face in his hands as his body shook gently with small sobs, " _He was such a good pokemon...he shouldn't be gone! he should be here with us! with all of us!"_ Ash said to no one in particular, his voice growing in volume as he spoke, " _He should be here! With us! With...w-w-with me..."_ Ash's voice quieted down to a soft whisper, his hands dropping to his side as small tears trickled down his face.

Natalie opened her mouth to speak but stopped when Ash shook his head, picking up the still sleeping Pikachu in his arms before lying down - facing away from Natalie and placing Pikachu close to his face, " _I'm going to sleep"_ Ash muttered, making Natalie look at her crush with a sad look - she knew he was hurting badly, but she didn't know how to help him. Sighing to herself, Natalie laid down herself, turning so she was facing the cave mouth: closing her eyes, Natalie slowly fell into a resless sleep, the sound of rain lingering in the back of her mind.

\- **Sometime in the night -**

Ash woke up to the sensation of something, or someone shaking him, " _Ash"_ Recognizing the voice, Ash slowly turned over to face Mewtwo, who stood above Ash with his hood on once again, " _Get up Ash, That girl needs to apy for what she has done"_ Mewtwo spoke with serious tone, teleporting him and Ash out of the cave before Ash could reply. Ash blinked and looked around at his surroundings as he landed on his feet - he was in the jail section of the police station, " _This way"_ Ash heard Mewtwo tell him, turning to see the psychic pokemon walking down the hall: blinking in confusion, Ash followed him until they stopped outside a cell - upon looking inside Ash's face turned to that of pure hatred.

Sat behind the safety of the cell bars was Dawn, who looked up when Ash and Mewtwo approached her cell, a scowl on her face when she sore Ash, " _What do you want?"_ She hissed at the boy, stopping when she felt a sharp pain in her head, " _I wouldn't push your look pathetic human,"_ Mewtwo warned the blue haired girl, pressing his fingers together - making the girl hold her head in pain. He would have kept going if Ash hadn't grabbed his hand to stop him, " _Stop"_ Mewtwo looked at Ash with bewilderment but stopped regardless, shooting Ash a look, demanding an explanation, " _Were not like her - were not murderers"_

As the pain stopped, Dawn sighed but raised a brow at Ash's words, " _What are you talking about? I didn't murder anyone!"_ Dawn exclaimed, crossing her arms and leaning back on her uncomfortable bed, " _Now your just making things up to get your own way, pathetic"_ Mewtwo's eyes began to glow a deep red as his anger began to bubble, but Ash stepped forwards and placed a glowing hand onto one of the bars, watching as it melted away under his touch - which made Dawn's eyes widen in shock and fear.

 _"You...your a murderer, you killed Torkoal, and you won't admit it because you don't care!"_ Ash roared in anger, both his hands now glowing light blue, " _You killed him! You knew he was injured! BUT YOU DIDN'T CARE! YOU KILLED HIM!"_ Ash continued, aiming his hands at a cowering Dawn, two small sphere's shooting out his hands and heading for Dawn. Mewtwo reacted Quickly, throwing up a psychic barrier in front of Dawn - the two sphere's hit the barrier and exploded, making Dawn cover her head in fear.

" _Ash, this was a mistake, we should leave - your Aura can't take this emotional stress"_ Mewtwo told the boy, gripping his hand as Ash went to send another sphere at Dawn. Turning to look into Mewtwo's calm eyes with his own rage filled eyes, Ash took several shaky breaths - the glow on his hands slowly disappearing as he collapsed panting. Catching his panting Trainer, Mewtwo shot a glare at Dawn, " _Your lucky i stopped him - he would have kileld you, and you would deserve it"_ Mewtwo stated, teleporting himself and the panting Ash away - leaving Dawn in a crying, cowering mess.

 _"Whats going on in here?!_ the sound of the officer's voice boomed through the halls as he walked towards Dawns cell, stopping and staring in shock at the melted bars and the shaking girl, " _What the hell?!"_

 **\- Back in the cave -**

Natalie and Pikachu had woken up Ash missing, and were frantically looking for any sign of the boy: the two jumped in surprise but breathed a sigh of relief when Mewtwo appeared in the cave with Ash: Only to turn to concern when they sore Ash panting heavily and standing only with Mewtwo's support, " _Ash! What happened?!"_ Natalie cried, running over to Ash and taking him off Mewtwo, moving her bag to the floor and laying Ash's head on to it - the boy was currently slipping in and out of consciousness.

 _"We went to confront the Pokemon killer, and he used to much of his aura"_ Mewtwo explained as Natalie took Ash from him. Pikachu cried out, " _Pikapii!"_ When he sore Ash, running over to his trainer and shaking him, " _Pikapii!"_ Pikachu stopped when he felt Mewtwo's hand on his shoulder, making him look back at the psychic type in worry " _Do not worry, he needs rest to recover his Aura energy - but he will be fine"_ Mewtwo explained, making Natalie sigh in relief once more whilst Pikachu cried out in happiness, nudging his way under Ash's arm and cuddling into the now unconscious boy.

 **\- A Few Hour's Later -**

Ash groaned softly as he blinked his eyes open, slowly sitting up whilst holding his head, " _crap, my head Is killing me..."_ He muttered, looking around, surprised when he didn't see the walls of the cave, but instead the white walls of the pokemon's center trainer rooms., _"How did I get he-urg!"_ Ash started, groaning from a sharp pain in his chest as he tried to stand up.

 _"Don't push yourself,"_ Ash heard, looking up to see Mewtwo standing in front of him, " _You used a lot of your Aura last night - so your body is weak right now"_ Mewtwo finished, helping Ash back into bed - Ash frowned but nodded in understanding, the pain in his chest slowly fading whilst the pain in his head stayed, " _how did I get here? where's Natalie and Pikachu?"_ Ash asked, noticing that neither of the two were present.

 _"Their in the room next door - they stayed up all night watching you till I took over - the others are in the next couple of rooms, The girl told them what had happened with you - they were also concerened but the doctor said you needed your rest"_ Mewtwo explained before a small look of guilt crossed his face, " _It's my fault your in this position - I shouldn't have taken you to see the blue haired girl, you were still grieving - I apologise"_

Ash watched as Mewtwo bowed his head in apology: with a small smile on his face, Ash reached over to grasp Mewtwo's hand, making the pokemon look at him, " _Don't worry about you - you wanted her to pay for what she did...and she will"_ Ash confirmed with a small nod, making Mewtwo smile ever so slightly at the boy's forgiveness.

 _"I can sense your Pikachu and the older gilr outside - should I let them in?"_ Mewtwo asked - still not sure of trusting anyone other than Ash. The boy smiled and nodded softly, watching as the psychic pokemon opened the door, only for Pikachu to run past him and jump on to Ash, " _PIKAPII!"_ He cried happily as he looked at Ash, who smiled and hugged the mouse, watching as Natalie walked in with a look of relief on her face.

As Pikachu jumped to Ash's shoulder - Natalie leant over the bed and hugged the raven-haired boy tightly. Ash blushed slightly at the hug, but smiled and hugged her back, " _I-I was really worried Ash..."_ Natalie whispered to him, making him raise a hand to stroke her hair as she continued to hug him, " _I thought you were going to leave us..."_ She continued, small tears dripping onto Ash's chest.

 _"I'm sorry I scared you Natalie...but I'm okay now, or I will be..."_ Ash soothed the older girl, gently running his fingers through her hair - which to his relief, made the softly crying girl calm down. Pulling back a few inches so she could look into Ash's eyes, Natalie blushed and whispered softly, " _I thought you would leave before I could..."_ She trailed off, leaning down and pressing her lips to Ash's in a soft kiss.


	34. Court Room Days

Ash's eyes widened as he felt Natalie's lip touch his own, " **S-she's kissing me, what do i do?!"** Ash thought to himself as his body froze - Pikachu in the mean time grinned, jumping of Ash's shoulder and walking over to Mewtwo, " _Pi-Pika-Chu!"_ Mewtwo shrugged at the electric mouse, psychically moving a Ketchup bottle in front of Pikachu, who grinned, popping the lif open and began eating the red sauce, " _I will never understand your obsession with that disgusting red source you call food"_ Mewtwo told the happy electric mouse in disgust: Pikachu just stuck his tong out at him before continuing to eat the ketchup happily. Natalie slowly leaned back, a dark blush covering her face as Ash stared at he with wide eyes, " _Ash...Ash i''m-" "Your awake!"_ Maddison shouted, unknowingly ruining the Nash moment _(Nash! Natalie and Ash?)_ As she rushed over to the raven haired boys side, _"Guys, he's awake!"_ She shouted, taking Ash's free hand and hugging it as Richie, A.J and Jason all burst into the room, eyes widened with relief.

" _Dude, your okay!"_ Jason shouted as Natalie pulled back so she was standing next to Ash's side, " _We thought you were a goner!"_ Richie chirped in, noting the blush on Ash's and Natalie's faces as he walked up to Ash's side, " _So glad to see your awake"_ A.J finished, following Richie and offering Ash his hand, the two sharing a bro hug as the group - excluding Natalie - laughed.

" _Excuse me...?"_ The groups chattering was interrupted as they all turned their attention to the door were Officer Jenny stood in the frame, a clipboard in her hands and a sad smile on her face, " _I'm sorry to interrupt - but we have some news regarding Dawn Blitz"_ Her words caught everyone's attention - even Pikachu who was eating his victory ketchup stopped, dropping the bottle with his ears perked up as he jumped onto Ash's bed with wide eyes. The room fell silent a everyone waited for Jenny to talk: with a small cough, Jenny flipped a piece of paper over the clipboard before explaining, " _will be sent to trial a week from today - we wish for Mr. Ketchum to be present as a witness if possible"_

Everyone turned their attention to Ash, who had his head ducked slightly, his eyes hidden under the rim of his hat - Jenny panicked a little as she continued to explain, " _I-if not we understand, we will not be-" "I'll be there"_ Jenny stopped as Ash spoke up, lifting his head to reveal slight tear filled, but relieved and determind eeys, " _For Torkoal - for everyone pokemon that she ever hurt - I'll be there"_ Jenny blinked but nodded, flipping the clipboard down with a smile, _Thank you young man, here is the location of the trial - we thank you for you cooperation"_ She finished, saluting the boy before leaving the room.

 **\- 1 Week Later -**

Ash took a shaky breath as he stood outside the court room - the day had finally arrived for Dawn's trial. Over the week a lot had happened. Dawn's crimes had made headlines, shaking all of Sinnoh to its core at the horrendous revelation of Dawns crimes swept the region: but that wasn't all that happened - the likes of Professor Rowen- who gave Dawn her starter and pokedex, and Cynthia, the champion of the region who personally knew Dawn were informed and asked to attend the hearing. The disgust and horror the Professor and Champion felt when they were told of the unforeseen torture the blue haired girl had subjected the pokemon two was indescribable - Cynthia was tasked with the unfortunate job of telling Dawn's mother, Johanna, about the serious crimes her daughter was being charged with.

 **\- Scene Cut -**

" _H-how could she? W-where did i go wrong?"_ the former coordinator star cried, her face burred in her hands as her faithful Glameow wined in sadness, circling Johanna's legs in an attempt to comfort her trainer. Cynthia looked at the distraught mother with sympathy, " _Please don't blame yourself - your daughter made the choice - i'm sorry, but i'm required to show you this picture - it shows the worst of what your daughter has down"_ Cynthia explained with a sad voice, pulling a photo out and placing it into the still crying mother's lap - making the woman gasp in horror at what she sore.

 _"I know this is a lot to take in at once, and i can't begin to imagine the pain your feeling right now Johanna - but the police wanted to know if you would attend the hearing as an interrogator for you daughter - they said if not thy would understand"_ Cynthia told the mother, who was shaking violently as she stared at the picture in her lap. She stayed silent for a few minutes before wiping her tears with her sleeve: reaching a shaky hand down to stroke her still circling Glameow's head as she spoke to the champion, " _I'll come - i need to here it in her own words Cynthia"_

 **\- Back To The Present -**

Ash watched as a car pulled up, the door opening to revealing a still broken Johanna who - upon seeing Ash and his friends - ran over to the boy and hugged him tightly, tears filling her eyes, " _I'm so sorry for your loss Ash"_ She apologized as Ash moved his arms to hug her back, a sad smile on his face, " _It's not okay, but thank you...come on...i'll walk with you..."_ Ash offered, leaning back and taking the older woman's hand. The blue haired woman nodded, wiping her tears, squeezing Ash's hand as they walked into the court room together.

Ash took a final deep breath as he and Johanna made their way to the front of the court, Ash sitting down behind the left table as Johanna sat on the stand behind him. Taking a minute to look around the room, Ash was surprised at who was sitting on Dawn's side: May, Brock, Misty, Iris, Cilan, even Gary were sat glaring daggers at Ash, **"They must have came when they heard the news..."** Ash thought to himself, turning his back on the traitors and looking up at the judge as he hammered his gavel on a piece of wood.

" _Order, Order in the court - today we are addressing the crimes of Miss. Dawn Blitz"_ His voice boomed through the room, a clear amount of authority in his voice as the court room quietened down whilst the doors opened to reveal Dawn in an orange suit and her hands bound with chains. Ash felt her glare as she was escorted down to her own chair by the guards, sitting down and turning her attention to the judge as he spoke to her, " _Miss. Blitz, how do you plea? "Not guilty"_ Her cold words sent a shiver up Ash's spine as he tried to hold in his anger at the words the girl spoke, " **NOT GUILTY?!"** He thought angrily, calming down when he felt Natalie place a hand on his, making him turn to her - the two were sort of dating now, though Ash wasn't 100% sure if that was true or not.

Taking a shaky breath, Ash nodded at Natalie who looked at him with concern before turning to face the judge as he called Dawn to the stand - watching as she took the stand and swore to tell the truth. " _You claim not guilty - so why don't we here the story from your point of view Miss. Blitz?"_ The prosecutor spoke to Dawn, who nodded and said, " _Gladly"_ before telling her story in her own words.

 _" First of all i didn't steal the pokemon - they chose to come with me and not with him - its not stealing if they wanted to come with me is it?" As for why they chose me its simple, me and others explained how much better we were for them than Ash was"_ Dawn started, spitting Ash's name out as she spoke, " _We didn't force them to chose us over him - they did because they knew we were stronger!"_ Dawn continued, slightly nervous when she sore the jury talking and Ash's lawyer taking notes of her words - but decided it was in her favor as she finished explaining, the prosecutor stepping up to begin the questioning.

 _"Miss. Blitz, You may not be aware of this, - but taking Mr. Ketchum's pokemon, regardless if it was by the Pokemon's choice is still stealing - you didn't have Mr. Ketchum's permission to take his pokemon"_ Dawn's face went pale at the words, shaking her head and trying to keep her cool as he began to ask questions, " _How many of Mr. Ketchum;s pokemon did you take"_

 _"Two"_

 _"Two? then why did you have in your position four of Mr. Ketchum's pokemon?"_ _"No comment"_ Dawn replied, not wanting to get her friends in trouble by answering. The prosecutor seemed annoyed but stayed professional as he continued to question her, " _Very well then, How long were you torturing Mr. Ketchum's pokemon?_ Dawn raised a brow at the question and scoffed, crossing hr arms as she answered, " _I didn't torture them - i was helping them to become stronger"_

Ash had to stop himself from standing up as Dawn spoke, clearly thinking she ha done nothing wrong as the prosecutor reach behind him to grab a folder, " _Oh no? Then tell me what you think of this"_ He stated, placing a large picture in front of her that once again drained the color from her face: It was a picture of Torkoal on the operating table - clearly no longer alive as blood oozed out his leg and his skin changed from orange to a dull grey color, " _The prosecution rests"_ the man finished, taking the photo away from Dawn and sitting down at his table once more.

 _"We will take a short recess 0f 15 minutes, dismissed,"_ The judge announced, striking his gavel down once more, watching as the room filed out, leaving only him, Dawn and Ash in the room, the room completely silent the whole time.

 **-15 minutes later -**

The room slowly filled up once again as the judge caled for order once mroe, looking to the jury, " _Has the jury reached a verdict?"_

 _"We have you honor, we find the defendant, guilty of theft, manipulation, abuse and torture"_


	35. Trial After Effects

The room's silence was destroyed upon the jury's reading their verdict: On Ash's side was the sound of happiness as Richie, A.J, Maddison, Natalie, Rowen, Cynthia and Johanna all cheered and hugged one anther - even Pikachu was jumping on the table in front of Ash in joy at seeing Dawn get served justice. On Dawn's side were shouts of anger, as Misty, Brock, Cilan, Iris and Gary all shouted in protest, only stopping when police guards burst into the room and grabbed each of them.

 _"What the hell is going on?!"_ Iris demanded as the police cuffed her and the others, her eyes widening when they took her poke'balls away from her, " _Give me my pokemon back!"_

 _"but some of them aren't yours, are they?"_ Iris and the group all turned their head's to see Professor Oak walking next to him, " _That goes for all of you - Dawn isn't the only one guilty of stealing from Ash, you all are, aren't you?"_ Just as they were about to protest, Oak held his hand up to silence them as he continued, " _Save your excuses, we already have evidence that you all not only stole Ash's pokemon but have done terrible things"_

Turning his eyes to Brock, who was struggling against the cuffs, Professor Oak scowled at the boy making him raise a brow, " _Brock - we have eye witness reports from your referee that you tried to physically attack Ash before you abandoned your pokemon for defencing him - we also have his confirmation that you have in your possession Ash's **Gigalith, Seismitoad**_ _and_ _ **Krookodile"**_ Oak finished, watching as Brock's face drained of colour before he turned his attention to Misty.

 _"I have three written statements from your sisters that you not only had **Croconaw, Buizel** and **Kingler** in your possession and still have **Dewott,** but that when Ash challenged you to a battle, you continued to try and attack his pokemon when it was down, and left said pokemon to drown in your pool" _Oak hissed at the girl, who glared back at the professor whilst cursing her sister's names under her breath.

 _"You two are a disgrace to the Kanto region gyms"_ Oak finished, watching as they began to be taken away, stopping when Ash shouted, " _Stop!"_ Turning to the boy who had stood up and walked over to stand on the other side of Oak, ignoring his mother, Ash looked at the two trainers with a passive look, " _You two were my first friends - my BEST friends - but you betrayed me and now look were you are! I hope you both spend the rest of your lives thinking about who you have hurt because of your selfishness"_ Ash finished, nodding to the guards who continued to drag the two away before Oak and Ash turned to face May.

 _"I saved your region, gave you your career, taught you how to be a trainer and this is how I'm replayed? Pokemon stolen, friendship stomped on, chased from my own home, TORKOAL'S DEATH!"_

May blinked at the shout, stepping back slightly, bumping into the police officer behind as Ash continued, " _And to top it off? You AND your parents made Max betray me - but the jokes on you! Even if you disown Max, I'll take him as MY brother nd take care of him better than you ever did!"_ Ash finished, smirking when he sore May glare at him, " _You know what? I wonder what Manaphy would think if he knew what you did to me"_ Mays eyes widened at this words as she was dragged away, just like Misty and Brock.

Finally turning to Iris and Cilan with the biggest scowl he could muster, Ash finally addressed his last traveling companions, " _You two - I don't eve remember how we became friends! Iris - you just started following me for whatever reason, but all you ever did was put me down - sure I wasn't the greatest trainer but I cared for them all - in fact if you hadn't met me, you would still have only one dragon type and an Excadrill that hated you"_

 _"As for Cilan, I never understood a word you said! No one ever did! It was like it was impossible for you to talk like we did - being that you spoke in stupid riddles and rhymes all the time"_ _Ash finished, turning his head away from the two as they were taken away, only to have Delia look to him, making him glare at her with anger, "You! I don't know, or care for why your here! If you were hoping I would forgive you your wrong! I know for a fact you weren't forced to betray me, you chose to - you delivered the final blow that day, kicked me when iw as down and all by myself - you did that to YOUR OWN SON!"_ Ash screamed, tears gathering in his eyes as he turned and ran out the court room, the distant shout of Delia's shout echoing in his ears.


	36. Final Mission

A week had passed since the court incident: with Professor Oak's help, the rest of the trators were trialed and jailed for their crimes - Ash was returned his pokemon, and to his surprise, all of the traitors pokemon - the court had decided that Ash was the best one to explain to them what had happened and to release them into the appropriate condition. Ash however was unsure about the pokemon that were given to him - he didn't know if he could trust them, plus he knew that the likes of Gigalith, Torterror and Staraptor didn't want to be with him.

 **\- Scene Cut-**

The sun could barley be seen over the horizon as Ash stared at a grouchy looking Mewtwo, " _Must we do this at such a ridicules time of day?"_ Mewtwo asked in aggravation, rubbing his eyes tiredly whilst flipping his hood up as Ash had instructed: Ash nodded, flipping his own hood up to conceal his face as Pikachu sat on his shoulder, waiting for his trainer to start, " _It has to be now...This needs to be done as soon as possible, so come on, to the first place"_

Mewtwo grumbled but nodded, teleporting the three to the outskirts of Eterna Forest: Ash nodded in thanks whilst looking down at the selection of poke'balls he held in his hand, throwing them and watching as the pokemon all appeared in front of him in a flash of blue light: before him Stood Brock's **Sudowoodo, Blissey** and **Fortress** , Tracy's **Venonat** and **Scyther (** Who had been taken from Tracy upon arrest then later given to Ash at the trial), May's **Beautifly, Skitty** and newly evolved **Venusaur,** Dawn's **Pachirisu** and **Buneary,** Iris's **Emolga** and Cilan's **Pansage:** Alongside his own **Unfezant, Heracross, Snorlax, Snivy,Torterror** and **Noctowl.**

Ash looked over the group of pokemon with a straight face, " _Everyone listen up! I have been tasked the job or returning you to a habitable place so you can be free once more since your own trainers have been deemed unworthy of looking after pokemon anymore"_ Ash explained, surprised when the group stayed silent, save fro the small growling he could here from a few of them, " _Since a lot of you lived and thrived in the forest, I bought you here - However, I also wish to extend a hand out to any of you who wish to come with me - I won't hold it what your trainers did against you, it will be a fresh start, so anyone who want to come with me"_ Ash started, pulling out 16 empty poke'balls and placing them on the floor, " _Step forwards and capture yourselves"_

The pokemon all stared silently at the poke'balls in front of them, the silence breaking when Blissey stepped forwards, a smile on her face as she tapped the poke'ball in front of her and aloud herself to be caught - putting up no fight against the poke'ball which flashed red once before staying still. Ash smiled and watched as a few more pokemon, now with more confidence stepped forward allowing themselves to be caught as well: In the end **Blissey, Sudowoodo, Scyther, Beautifly, Buneary, Pachirisu, Snivy, Heracross** and **Noctowl** sided with Ash, allowing themselves to be caught or returning to their old poke'balls.

With a smile on his face, Ash nodded and scooped up the poke'balls, placing the caught and returned pokemon into his bag whilst slipping the other's into his pocket. Looking at the remaining pokemon, Ash shook his head and turned away from them whilst looking at Mewtwo, " _Lets go, they made their choice and we have other pokemon to get to"_

As Ash and Mewtwo disappeared, Pikachu turned to shoot the remaining pokemon a glare - whilst they all just stared after them, wondering if they had made the right decision.

\- **Second Scene Cut -**

Ash opened his eyes as he teleported to the fire path near Mount Chimney, wiping the sweat that had already began to gather on his forehead from the heat of the area, Ash quickly released May's **Blazikin** and Dawns **Quilava,** repeating to the two the same speech he had before - holding the two poke'balls in front of him this time because of the heat from the floor. To Ash's surprise, both of the pokemon re-captured themselves, making Ash shrug with a smile as he placed them inside his bag - looking to Mewtwo and nodding, teleporting away once again.

 **\- Third Scene Cut -**

Ash repeated this process, teleporting to the rocky and snowy mountains, the ocean, swamp and the plain lands, releasing the appropriate pokemon into the area's repeating his speech and offering them a place with him: After everything was all said and don, Ash ended up with Brock's **Golem, Crobat, Blissey, Sudowoodo** and **Croagunk,** \- **Steelix** chose to remain with Oak at his lab - Misty's **Psyduck** and **Corsola,** Tracy's **Scyther,** May's **Blazikin, Beautifly** and **Glaceon - Munchalx** chose to go with Max, to no-one's surprise - Dawn's **Buneary, Pachirisu** and **Quilarva** and Iris's **Dragonight.**

As for Ash's own pokemon, the likes of **Snivy, Heracross, Noctowl, Gible** and **Gliscor** chose to return to him - the rest staying and wondering to themselves, " _Did I make the right decion?"_

* * *

 **AND THAT IS A WRAP!**

 **This was a lot of fun to write - if you guys want to see some sort of sequel where THIS Ash does different things - let me know!**


End file.
